Born in Sadsbury Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, Jefferson Chalfant earned a distinguished reputation for portraits and for technical skill with "trompe l'oeil" [fool the eye] still lifes. His paintings were usually illuminated with glowing light, achieved by the subtle gradation of colors. He devoted the last thirty years of his life to portraits, and most of them are in private homes in Wilmington.

A part of the tradition from William Harnett, Chalfant's still-life paintings often have old books in disarray and snuffed candles signifying the absence and temporary aspects of human life. In fact, it has been written that "his still lifes, in almost every instance, can be traced to a prototype by Harnett. His reliance on the o...