Strawberry Basket

Mediums: oil, canvas.
Location: The collection of N. Kournikova and A. Fialkov, Moscow (Russia).

Writer Gertrude Stein admired the still life with rich bright colours – in those years she was an indisputable authority in the art circles of Paris. The painting was placed next to Picasso’s work at the American house of the feminist. Stein’s friendship and patronage were important for the young artist who had just arrived in France, since she helped financially and introduced him to a salon where only the most famous representatives of new art were invited. It seems that the saturated colour of the ripe berries makes the whole canvas, including the background wall, equally colourful, not to mention the imaginary aroma that pours onto the viewer.