Coffee Grinder and Glass
Juan Gris
Spanish, 1887–1927
1915 Oil on paperboard
In this jewel-like still life, the letters "Le J" refer to Le Journal—the Paris newspaper that Juan Gris depicted in lavender on the blue top of a black table. The window blinds, coffee grinder, and wine or aperitif glass suggest that the setting may be a Paris café.
The still life was a favored subject for Gris, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and other Cubists. However, their paintings are not at all still! Instead, forms are broken up and overlaid. Tabletops tilt upward, and perspective is reversed. Cubist artists, like their contemporaries in science and mathematics, explored new ideas about time, space, and motion.
Maverick Mist 
This painting is fascinating. Whether or not one particularly cares for cubism this is a creative gem.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I really liked this too Holly, probably because of the tones and textures.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Cubism is probably the only abstract art I like. I think it was the first or among the first so in order to progress everything had to get worse from there. (“worse” of course is strictly a biased opinion on my part) I don’t understand how someone can decompose objects and remake them as in this painting and Gaberndorf II shown a few posts back. Seems to require some tricky thinking.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It does take some dimensional thinking it would appear. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person