“Still Life with Coffee Mill,” created by Juan Gris in 1916, is a notable work that exemplifies the Cubist art movement. As a sketch and study, it is held in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, located in Chicago, IL, US. This artwork is a testament to the innovative visual language that came to define the early 20th century through the lens of Cubism.
The artwork portrays an arrangement of objects associated with a coffee service, including a coffee mill at the center, which Gris has deconstructed and presented in a reorganized form characteristic of Cubist style. The representation uses geometric abstraction to decompose and flatten the three-dimensional objects into a two-dimensional plane. One notices the various tones of shading to suggest depth, and a use of intersecting planes that may evoke the sense of multiple perspectives being viewed simultaneously. The monochromatic execution adds a sense of cohesion to the diverse elements within the composition. The delicate and precise lines indicate a thoughtful study of form and space, inviting viewers to consider the marriage of the abstract and the representational that Gris and his Cubist contemporaries so deftly explored.
