The Table in Front of the Picture 1926

Juan Gris made "The Table in Front of the Picture" with oil on canvas at an unknown date. Look at those ochre hues and deep reds that fill the background, making the painting seem both warm and intense. I can imagine Gris in his studio, arranging and rearranging these objects – a bowl of fruit, a book, a knife. I wonder what he was thinking about as he layered these forms, teasing out the relationships between them. The open book and the knife add a narrative, an implied action. Is it about slicing into knowledge or dissecting beauty? This piece definitely has echoes of other Cubist painters, but Gris brings his own sensibility to the table, doesn't he? What you see here is a painter in conversation with his peers, pushing the boundaries, exploring the possibilities of seeing. For Gris, and for us, painting is an act of discovery.