Le Raisin Noir 1923

Juan Gris painted "Le Raisin Noir," or "The Black Grape," with oil on canvas. The painting is a web of geometric forms that seem to move in and out of focus. The colour palette is subtle, earthy even, and the application of paint is so precise. Up close, the surface reveals a tight, almost granular texture, like he’s grinding the pigment right into the canvas. I love the way the dark purple of the grapes creates a push and pull with the ochre yellows, playing tricks on the eye. Look closely and you can see that Gris has broken the form of the grape bunch into distinct shapes, creating a kind of faceted jewel. It’s as if he’s asking us to question what we see, to reconstruct the image from fragments. Like Braque, Gris challenges our perceptions, reminding us that art is not just about representing the world, but about re-imagining it.