The artwork titled “Violin and Sheet Music on a Table (Petit Oiseau)” is a creation by the artist Georges Braque, dated back to 1913, and executed in France. The medium of this artwork encompasses charcoal and oil on canvas, exemplifying the Synthetic Cubism movement. It is a still life piece with dimensions measuring 73 by 54 centimeters. Currently, this significant work of art resides within a private collection.
The artwork displays a complex interplay of shapes and forms, indicative of the Synthetic Cubist style, which sought to combine various elements into a cohesive whole. Dominated by a neutral color palette, the artwork features geometric fragmentation of objects that suggest the presence of a violin and pieces of sheet music, balanced against a relatively flattened pictorial plane. Textural contrasts created through the use of charcoal alongside oil paint add depth to the composition, while the interlocking planes and the simplification of the objects into basic shapes reflect the characteristic approach of Cubism to re-envision the three-dimensional world on a two-dimensional canvas. The play of light and shadow, along with the limited use of color, focuses the viewer’s attention on the integration of the synthetic elements rather than on individual objects, allowing the viewer to contemplate the artwork as an exploration of space and form rather than a replication of reality.