Still Life with Apples (Food) 1985

Horia Bernea made Still Life with Apples, we don't know exactly when, using oil paints, likely in his studio. The painting’s got this beautifully subdued palette, right? Muted greens, yellows, browns, playing out in a way that feels both intimate and a little melancholy. You can sense Bernea was really absorbed in the process, letting the colors and textures emerge through the act of painting itself. There’s a real materiality to this work. You can almost feel the canvas and the brushstrokes, that thick, opaque paint. The apples themselves seem to float in this moody atmosphere, each with its own little imperfections. Look at the apple in the middle; there's this brown spot, a little bruise, painted with such care. It’s like Bernea's saying, "Hey, these are real apples, with real stories to tell.” Bernea's work makes me think of Giorgio Morandi, in the way he extracts so much from simple, everyday objects. There’s this sense of quiet observation, of finding something profound in the ordinary. Art is, after all, just a conversation.