Still Life with a Book and Oranges is an oil on canvas painting by the French artist Paul Signac. It was created in 1885 and is currently located at the Gemäldegalerie in Berlin, Germany. This piece belongs to the genre of still life and showcases oranges lying alongside a book.
Paul Signac, along with Georges Seurat, played a key role in developing the Neo-Impressionist movement which focused on employing small dots or “points” of pure color to blend together and create an image. “Still Life with a Book and Oranges” departs from Signac’s usual subject matter of landscapes and maritime scenes. Instead, it conveys his aesthetic values by showcasing the vibrancy of still life settings through bright colors.
The artwork measures 32.5 x 46.5 cm and features thick brushstrokes arranged into blocks that contain points of different hues introduced through divisionism techniques. Divisonism involves creating structure through colored lines that are blended optically instead of mixing pigments directly within brushstrokes to achieve chromatic luminosity or light effects.
In conclusion, “Still Life with a Book and Oranges” is one of Paul Signac’s most celebrated pieces for its masterful implementation of neo-impressionist techniques into still life genre paintings during the late-19th century period.”
