Still life with flowers by the sea 1948

Curator: Ah, this is David Burliuk's "Still life with flowers by the sea," created in 1948. The textures just sing, don't they? Editor: Absolutely. My immediate reaction is the thick impasto – the paint practically jumps off the canvas. There's a real physicality here. I can almost smell the linseed oil. Curator: Yes! It’s like a party of paint happened, right? The way he builds the composition is amazing—a clash of interior still life and exterior seascape... quite a vibrant experience to stand before, and, interestingly, painted "en plein-air." Editor: I notice the flowers are crammed into what looks like a common ceramic pitcher. Is he challenging that preciousness of high art still life, juxtaposing delicate blooms with everyday, almost mundane vessels? It's less about the *what* and more about the *how*. Curator: Precisely! Burliuk always had a twinkle in his eye. The pitcher, holding what appears to be hibiscus, roses, and perhaps oleander, all on top of what I interpret as either newspaper or simply flat papers—alongside the beachy items! He really did not discriminate in subject matter! Editor: Right. And what's this newspaper lying about, likely being blown in the wind? The disposable paper existing transiently next to the shell—which might speak to our fossil fuels as a society; from where we come from. Curator: Love the idea! Burliuk, after all, embraced the moniker "Father of Russian Futurism." It feels like he's deliberately scrambling the signals, urging us to feel the now through those contrasts. I see the seaside figures standing next to a small pier or dock—adding such wonderful movement. Editor: Totally. And look at that clashing materiality, and process of the plein air! It is anything but pristine! Did the artist mix some beach sand or some additional, thicker media when laying it down onto his flat support? It makes for a delightful feel, even if there isn't much to celebrate from this palette—a curious feat. Curator: What a glorious sensory overload Burliuk throws at us in a small but mighty, still life of the sea. We started looking and felt an ocean breeze—isn’t that fabulous? Editor: Exactly! For a fairly straightforward painting, it really got my wheels turning with its context and how it was crafted. Thanks for painting the picture, so to speak.