Georges Braque

Mlle Mottart, Paris (acquired by 1953)
Private Collection
Acquired from the above by the present owner

Brussels, Palais des Beaux-Arts de Bruxelles, 25me Anniversaire, 1953

George Isarlov, Catalogue des oeuvres de Georges Braque, Paris, 1932, listed no. 391
Editions Maeght, Catalogue de l'oeuvre de Georges Braque, Peintures 1924-1927, Paris, 1960, no. 49, illustrated

In excellent condition. Canvas is not lined. Rich surface liberally integrated with sand. Under U.V, no inpainting is apparent.
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Painted in 1925, Tranche de Melon, Fruits, Verre is a brilliant example of the artist's singular innovations with the cubist idiom in the 1920s. John Golding describes the essence of Braque's still lifes during this unique period: "The tonal harmonies of the works of the 1920s are splendid in their sobriety – and in this respect they are at times reminiscent of the still lifes of Holland's Golden Age. But more than any other French painter of his generation Braque was content to remain firmly within a national context; Cézanne was to remain a constant source of inspiration for Braque, but Poussin, Corot, Chardin and Le Nain also played a part in his affections. The paintings of the 1920s became more naturalistic, more accessible; it is possibly because of this that they remain amongst the most sought after and enjoyed of all Braque's still lifes" (John Golding, Braque Still Lifes and Interiors, London, 1990, p. 15).

Perhaps even more than the objects themselves, Braque was focused on the representation of space between them. In the present work, the juxtaposition of objects creates an arena of visual sensations for the viewer, ennunciated by the rhythm of line and areas of color fractured by bold shadows. Braque alluded to this concept when he said: "Objects do not exist for me except in so far as a rapport exists between them, and between them and myself. When one attains this harmony, one reaches a sort of intellectual non-existence... which makes everything possible and right. Life then becomes a perpetual revelation. That is true poetry" (quoted in John Richardson, Braque, London, 1961, p. 4). Tranche de Melon, Fruits, Verre encompasses the artist's fascination with the creation of pictorial space and the relationship not only between objects, but also between the objects and the viewer. The present work elevates this sensation with the added texture of sand on the canvas, lending the objects a powerful tactility.