Still Life with Pumpkin 1905

Paula Modersohn-Becker made "Still Life with Pumpkin" using oil on canvas, but when is anyone's guess! It looks like she was mixing up a whole bunch of tones; those browns and greys give the painting a kind of moody, earthy feel. But then you have the pumpkin, and suddenly there is this pop of sunny yellow. There's something about that big yellow curve in the foreground, it feels so present, like you could just reach out and touch it. It's like she's saying, ‘Here, look at this, it's simple, but it's beautiful.' The surface is built up from visible brushstrokes, little dabs of colour laid next to each other. Modersohn-Becker lets us see the workings, the labor of her painting process, but without being too labored. This feels like a conversation with Cezanne, stripping things down to their basic forms, but with a distinctly feminine touch. It leaves you thinking about the overlooked beauty of everyday objects and how they become a starting point for something deeper.