The Marble Console

Juan Gris Spanish

Not on view

This still life is one of two by Gris with mirror fragments, which would have offered a Cubist reflection of any person who stood before them. The artist facetiously defended his shortcut by noting how a painted mirror can never really be convincing because the surface of an actual one is always changing: “There is nothing else to do but stick on a real piece.” The book page is taken from the author’s preface to an obscure historical novel, Le bourreau du roi (The King’s Executioner) by Roland Bauchery. The heading, “DE L’AUTEUR” (of/by the author), now stands for Gris the artist, who has appropriated Bauchery’s authorship for his own creative ends.

The Marble Console, Juan Gris (Spanish, Madrid 1887–1927 Boulogne-sur-Seine), Oil, collage, and mirrored glass on canvas

Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.

Photograph Courtesy of Sotheby’s, Inc. ©