The Smoker II (1913)
Technique: Giclée quality print
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More about this artwork
Juan Gris's "The Smoker II," created in 1913, is a distinguished piece that exhibits the core characteristics of Cubism, a movement that revolutionized European painting and sculpture in the early 20th century. Gris, a pivotal figure in this movement, was known for his unique ability to deconstruct objects and subjects into geometric forms, reassembling them into abstract compositions that poetically balance between realism and abstraction.This drawing portrays the semi-abstract figure of a smoker, fragmented into intersecting planes and shapes. The gentle gradation of pencil shades and the subtle overlap of lines capture the dynamic essence of Cubism, where the viewer is invited to derive multiple perspectives and interpretations from a seemingly simple scene. The forefront of the painting suggests a newspaper, further indicating the daily-life theme common in Gris's work, meant to anchor the abstract forms back to reality.The mastery of "The Smoker II" lies in its capacity to evoke sensory response and evoke the atmosphere of a moment frozen in time, despite—or perhaps because of—its fragmented appearance.