Still life
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Tincture of Myrrh, Stockton-on-Tees
Richard Heeps
Photography - 61 x 61 x 1 cm Photography - 24 x 24 x 0.4 inch
$1,137
Hommage à Matisse
Christian Jodin
Painting - 65 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 25.6 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$2,262
Arcane XIV- La Tempérance
Richard Laillier
Fine Art Drawings - 30 x 20 x 0.5 cm Fine Art Drawings - 11.8 x 7.9 x 0.2 inch
$1,137
LE PONT DE TERENEZ
Véronique Bourgeois-Noury
Painting - 162 x 97 x 2 cm Painting - 63.8 x 38.2 x 0.8 inch
$4,547
Hollyhocks Sketch
Tanya Sviatlichnaya
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 29.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.6 x 0 inch
$398
Ruby Lily Sketch
Tanya Sviatlichnaya
Painting - 40 x 29.5 x 0.1 cm Painting - 15.7 x 11.6 x 0 inch
$398
Red Freesia 02
Tanya Sviatlichnaya
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 29.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.6 x 0 inch
$398
Red Freesia 01
Tanya Sviatlichnaya
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 29.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.6 x 0 inch
$398
Yellow Freesia 02
Tanya Sviatlichnaya
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 29.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.6 x 0 inch
$398
Yellow Freesia 01
Tanya Sviatlichnaya
Fine Art Drawings - 40 x 29.5 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 15.7 x 11.6 x 0 inch
$398
Reflections – Untitled VI
David Paul Kay
Sculpture - 38.1 x 22.8 x 22.8 cm Sculpture - 15 x 9 x 9 inch
$3,410
Jorge's kitchen
Barry Cawston
Photography - 100 x 120 x 2 cm Photography - 39.4 x 47.2 x 0.8 inch
$3,137
Lech Ice Bar - Slim Aarons Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print
Slim Aarons
Photography - 101.6 x 101.6 cm Photography - 40 x 40 inch
$3,956
Adolfo De Velasco - 1988 Slim Aarons Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print
Slim Aarons
Print - 76.2 x 101.6 cm Print - 30 x 40 inch
$3,422
Villa Vera - Slim Aarons Limited Edition Estate Stamped Print
Slim Aarons
Photography - 101.6 x 152.4 cm Photography - 40 x 60 inch
$4,036
Moule-banane santana
Thierry Robert
Painting - 30 x 30 x 0.1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0 inch
$398
Moule-pêche sanguine
Thierry Robert
Painting - 30 x 30 x 0.1 cm Painting - 11.8 x 11.8 x 0 inch
$398
Jon Gould photographed by Andy Warhol. From The Love of Andy series
Manuel Santelices
Fine Art Drawings - 22.9 x 30.5 x 0.3 cm Fine Art Drawings - 9 x 12 x 0.1 inch
$900
Nature morte - série Abstraction
Anne Scandella
Painting - 62 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 24.4 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$573
Fleurs et pommes
Charlotte Abecassis
Painting - 56 x 42 x 3 cm Painting - 22 x 16.5 x 1.2 inch
$1,137
Le monde de l’art n’est pas le monde du pardon
Zao Wou-Ki
Print - 34 x 26 x 1 cm Print - 13.4 x 10.2 x 0.4 inch
$7,048
Ukrainian still life
Alisa Onipchenko-Cherniakovska
Painting - 89.9 x 80 x 2.5 cm Painting - 35.4 x 31.5 x 1 inch
$2,450
St. Pimen (hommage à Ivan Lazarov)
Lyuben Domozetski
Painting - 40 x 29.5 x 3.5 cm Painting - 15.7 x 11.6 x 1.4 inch
$1,330
Blue Jug on Table
Takashi Yasuoka
Painting - 22 x 27.3 x 1.8 cm Painting - 8.7 x 10.7 x 0.7 inch
$1,557
Yellow Flowers
Takashi Yasuoka
Painting - 27.3 x 22 x 1.8 cm Painting - 10.7 x 8.7 x 0.7 inch
$1,557
Bouquet niçois
Percival Pernet
Painting - 64.5 x 51 x 0.3 cm Painting - 25.4 x 20.1 x 0.1 inch
$1,432
Botanic
Pascal Marlin
Fine Art Drawings - 21 x 14 x 0.1 cm Fine Art Drawings - 8.3 x 5.5 x 0 inch
$171
Cage / Sans titre
Meteo Meteo
Painting - 29.7 x 21 x 0.2 cm Painting - 11.7 x 8.3 x 0.1 inch
$131 $66
Lilacs on a Table
Yuriy Demiyanov
Painting - 45 x 55 x 3 cm Painting - 17.7 x 21.7 x 1.2 inch
$2,274
Peonies and Apricots
Yuriy Demiyanov
Painting - 50 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 19.7 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch
$1,933
Against the Light
Yuriy Demiyanov
Painting - 50 x 60 x 3 cm Painting - 19.7 x 23.6 x 1.2 inch
$1,933
Offrir
Philippe Huart
Fine Art Drawings - 13 x 18 x 0.2 cm Fine Art Drawings - 5.1 x 7.1 x 0.1 inch
$568
Still Life with a Green Bottle
Yuriy Demiyanov
Painting - 40 x 50 x 2 cm Painting - 15.7 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,478
Les Animaux de la Savane / Savannah's Animals
Eric Khellas
Painting - 92 x 73 x 5 cm Painting - 36.2 x 28.7 x 2 inch
$1,364
Diogenes in a search for an honest man
Vladimir Kolosov
Painting - 30.5 x 38.7 x 0.3 cm Painting - 12 x 15.25 x 0.1 inch
$580
Watermelon season
Alexander Shandor
Painting - 70 x 80 x 2 cm Painting - 27.6 x 31.5 x 0.8 inch
$3,000
Boîte n°2 - série boîte de conserve
Anne-Marie Renno
Painting - 80 x 60 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 23.6 x 0.8 inch
$818
Le Cannet by night
Linda McCluskey
Painting - 80 x 120 x 2 cm Painting - 31.5 x 47.2 x 0.8 inch
$2,217
Ombres et Lumières sur le Quercy
Thérèse Bosc
Painting - 130 x 100 cm Painting - 51.2 x 39.4 inch
$2,774
Still life
Although at its heart a classic subject, the still life was the preferred approach of Cézanne, the artist who paved the way for art to enter its most modern phase. From Cubism to Hyperrealism via Pop art, sculpture, and photography, almost all art forms have been at some point shown that it is still possible to breathe new life into this age old theme.
Be it completely de-structured, funny, classic, or minimalist, the contemporary still life is far from old fashioned, despite the fact that it boasts a long, celebrated history.
Let's take a closer look at this theme that recurs so often across art history… even in antiquity, Pliny had already written about a painter called Piraikos, known for his paintings of 'provisions for cooking', and the optical illusions of Zeuxis, from which it was said that birds would try to pick off the raisins because they looked so real. The conventional still life as we know it today, however, dates back to the 17th century, where it developed in Holland under strict aesthetic codes.
Generally, oils on canvas were the preferred method for representing inanimate objects of varying types (lots of fruit, fish, game…) and flowers. The colours were muted, the background a monochromic black, the atmosphere heavy, and the light at a steep diagonal angle. There were few elements but they were precisely arranged and loaded with religious symbolism.
Even though still life was never considered a genre in its own right, almost all of the great masters have tried their hand at it at some point or other. Across the 19th century, all the art movements went through a still life phase: romanticism, impressionism, symbolism… and under the brushes of Degas, Cézanne, Monet, etc., still life evolved.
Little by little, artists added colours, erased the biblical references and replaced them with everyday objects in ever greater numbers: cooking utensils, cups of coffee, gas lamps, musical instruments…
In the 20th century, modern art once more dusted off this 'boring' subject, and began to play with its strict codes. From cubism to pop art to surrealism, all of the artistic movements made their mark on still life. Bit by bit, they took it to pieces and rebuilt it, moving ever closer to the contemporary still life, which has little to do with the original genre except for its central theme.
After his separation from Olga Khokhlova in 1936, Pablo Picasso painted 'Still Life Under a Lamp' whose plastic elements suggested themes that would later be developed in his famous 'Guernica' the following year. Pale lamplight dominates the triangular composition in the centre of the canvas and the arms of the antique sculpture appear to be on the verge of falling off the table. Although the piece altogether seems to move away from the classic still life, it maintains the traditional heavy atmosphere.
In 1956 the Catalan surrealist painter Salvador Dali painted 'Living Still Life' in his typical humorous style. The canvas – divided in two to represent night and day – shows a table on a balcony. The elements (wine, water, a pear, a knife…) are in motion, or rather levitating, as though someone has just struck the tabletop.
Artsper invites you to explore a range of contemporary still life pieces that are both traditional and surprising in our unique selection. Discover the work of Syvie Andlauer Baruch, Gonzalo Sicre, Zbigniew Wozniak, and many more…