''Still Life with a Poem'' is an

oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

artist

Juan Gris José Victoriano González-Pérez (23 March 1887 – 11 May 1927), better known as Juan Gris (; ), was a Spanish painter born in Madrid who lived and worked in France for most of his active period. Closely connected to the innovative artistic ge ...

, completed in 1915. It is held at the

Norton Simon Museum The Norton Simon Museum is an art museum located in Pasadena, California, United States. It was previously known as the Pasadena Art Institute and the Pasadena Art Museum and displays numerous sculptures on its grounds. Overview The Norton Sim ...

, in

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...

. Still life paintings depict real objects but not always from a specific viewpoint, as multiple viewpoints of a subject can be depicted. The idea of space is rearranged in ''Still Life with a Poem'', which is painted entirely of oils and imitates a collage on a wood grain table. A poem by

Pierre Reverdy Pierre Reverdy (; 13 September 1889 – 17 June 1960) was a French poet whose works were inspired by and subsequently proceeded to influence the provocative art movements of the day, Surrealism, Dadaism and Cubism. The loneliness and spiritual ap ...

is contained at the bottom of the oil painting, which seems to be creating a comparison between two separate paintings. This was Gris's first truly collaborative piece. Previously, he had worked with Reverdy to create a collaborative work but was abandoned because of the difficulty of printing during the war.

was born in Madrid in 1887. He lived for 39 years and died in 1927. Gris, whose real name was Jose Victoriano Gonzalez-Perez, studied engineering before becoming an artist. He created many famous works, including many pieces with Pierre Reverdy. The abstract art form, known as Cubism, was the most revolutionary art form in the 20th century. Originally developed by well-known figures like Picasso and Braque around 1907. Gris was a friend and neighbor of Picasso when living in Paris. Gris was known for refining this abstract art form into his own recognizable visual art form. As a recognizable figure in art, oftentimes he was referred to as 'the third cubist'.

,Reverdy, P. (2014). Pierre Reverdy. one of the greatest modern French poets, was born in 1889 and died in 1960. Like Gris, his work is well known and instantly recognizable. Reverdy was often described as a secret poet for secret readers. When Octavio Paz first described him like this, he talked about how often Reverdy would break the silence and disrupt empty spaces. Reverdy had always wished to not be well known, but his distinctive pieces helped him create the cubist poet population that he gained. His collaborative work with still-life paintings ended in 1927, due to the death of his peer, Gris. Like Gris, Reverdy worked closely with

Pablo Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, he is ...

and

Georges Braque Georges Braque ( , ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century List of French artists, French painter, Collage, collagist, Drawing, draughtsman, printmaker and sculpture, sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his all ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Still Life with a Poem 1915 paintings Paintings in the Norton Simon Museum Cubist paintings Still life paintings Paintings by Juan Gris Playing cards in art