Juan Gris’s Still Life With Flowers is an oil painting created in 1912 on canvas, with dimensions of 112.1 x 70.2 cm and currently held in the collection of The New York Museum of Modern Art. This artwork is a representation of the Cubism movement, where objects are displayed as if they are seen from different angles at the same time instead of a realistic representation. It features an angular drawing of flower vases filled with flowers laid out on a checkered patterned tablecloth. A birdcage and two oranges draw accent to the scene.
The precise lines, smooth contours and muted tones of greys, blues, whites and blacks create an industrial feeling in this painting that serves as homage to both art movements past and present while captivating its viewers with its beauty. It is clear that Gris put much thought into balancing composition elements to create this harmonious piece which evokes passion out of something so ordinary – still life objects such as flowers, fruits, birdcage etc., which he then radically unizes in an abstract Cubist painting style.
Still Life with Checked Tablecloth by Juan Gris was painted 3 years later in 1915 in similar fashion but instead featured a kitchen knife placed along a chessboard patterned tablecloth adorned by an orange half cut-open from top to bottom along with other still life objects such as wine bottle and onions placed on the side.
