Juan Gris — Gallery of Paintings Created Between 1911 and 1926

The works of the Spanish painter Juan Gris, known for their meticulous compositions, geometric forms, and vibrant colors, illustrate the very essence of Cubism – a revolutionary artistic style that forever changed the perception of space and its representation at the beginning of the 20th century.

Gris's approach to synthetic Cubism involved incorporating everyday objects and fragmented forms into his paintings, challenging traditional notions of representation and perspective. His careful rendering of geometric shapes and the interplay of transparent and opaque elements demonstrate Gris's attention to detail and his ability to transform ordinary objects into visually captivating subjects.

We have selected 50 paintings for publication – the best still lifes by the great master of Cubism, Juan Gris, for several reasons:
The precision and thoughtfulness of his approach to painting.
The artist's skill in deconstructing and reconstructing forms to create harmonious compositions.
Gris's paintings invite the viewer to contemplate the simplest joys of daily life and the beauty of ordinary moments, reflecting his ability to find meaning and poetry in everyday objects.

Unlike Picasso and Braque, Gris adhered to a stricter geometric structure; his Cubism is more orderly and "architectural." There is a sense of the artist's striving to create a flat composition in which individual elements interact with each other to form a unified whole. The main genre of Gris's painting is the still life. Explore the gallery of still lifes by the great master of Cubism, Juan Gris.

Juan Gris - Jar, Bottle and Glass

1911 canvas 59 × 50 cm

Juan Gris - The Painters Window

1914 canvas 81 x 100 cm

Juan Gris - Bottle Newspaper and Fruit Bowl

1915 canvas 73 x 50 cm

Juan Gris - Guitar on a Table

1915 canvas 73 x 92 cm

Juan Gris - Coffeepot

1916 canvas 47 x 39 cm

Juan Gris - Grapes

1916 canvas 55 x 47 cm

Juan Gris - Nature Morte

1916 canvas 64 x 80 cm

Juan Gris - Nature Morte au Verre

1916 canvas 50 x 41 cm

Juan Gris - Still Life White Tablecloth

1916 canvas 65 x 54 cm

Juan Gris - Still Life with a Table

1916 canvas 55 x 46 cm

Juan Gris - Still Life with Frut

1916 canvas 40 x 24 cm

Juan Gris - Still Life with Newspaper

1916 canvas 73 x 60 cm

Juan Gris - Compotier et nappe à carreaux

1917 canvas 80 x 53 cm

Juan Gris - Still Life with a Glass

1917 canvas 33 x 19 cm

Juan Gris - Bottle Glass and Newspaper

1918 canvas 41 x 26 cm

Juan Gris - Bottle of Wine

1918 canvas 55 x 38 cm

Juan Gris - Coffee Grinder

1920 canvas 60 x 8 cm

Juan Gris - Carafe and Book

1920 canvas 81 x 54 cm

Juan Gris - Nature Morte

1920 canvas 16 x 27 cm

Juan Gris - Guitar and Fruit

1920 canvas 50 x 61 cm

Juan Gris - Le Canigou

1921 canvas 88 x 123 cm

Juan Gris - Open Window

1921 canvas 66 x 100 cm

Juan Gris - Guitarra y Cantimplora

1922 canvas

Juan Gris - Raisins Carafe et Livre

1922 canvas 38 x 46 cm

Juan Gris - Nature Morte Avec Fruits

1923 canvas 19 x 24 cm

Juan Gris - The Black Grape

1923 canvas 46 x 27 cm

Juan Gris - Basket of Pears

1925 canvas 46 x 55 cm

Juan Gris - Compotier Carafe and Open Book

1925 canvas 64 x 81 cm

Juan Gris - Guitar and Newspaper

1925 canvas 65 x 81 cm

Juan Gris - La Grappe de Raisins

1925 canvas 38 x 47 cm

Juan Gris - La Lampe électrique

1925 canvas 65 x 81 cm

Juan Gris - Le Tapis Vert

1925 canvas 73 x 92 cm

Juan Gris - Mandolin and Fruit Dish

1925 canvas 73 x 94 cm

Juan Gris - Marble Table

1925 canvas 60 x 81 cm

Juan Gris - The Red Book

1925 canvas 73 x 60 cm

Juan Gris - Guitare et Compotier

1926 canvas 81 x 65 cm

Juan Gris - Bol et Livre

1926 canvas 38 x 45 cm

Juan Gris - Fruit with Bowl

1926 canvas 54 x 73 cm

Juan Gris - Guitar and Bunch of Grapes

1926 canvas 65 x 81 cm

Juan Gris - Guitar and Music Paper

1926 canvas 65 x 81 cm

Juan Gris - La Tranche de Melon

1926 canvas 33 x 42 cm

Juan Gris - Les Ciseaux

1926 canvas 50 x 60 cm

Juan Gris - Pommes et Citrons

1926 canvas 33 x 41 cm

Juan Gris - Table with Red Cloth

1926 canvas 92 x 74 cm

Juan Gris - Table in Front of The Picture

1926 canvas 50 x 61 cm

In Juan Gris’s work, reality is neither depicted nor destroyed — it is substituted. He rejects direct visual perception of the object in favor of its structural formula. In his Cubism, the object ceases to be an object of observation and becomes a sign, assembled from planes, rhythms, and proportions.

Gris is not concerned with how a thing looks — he is interested in how it is constructed. This is why the real object gives way to a structure in which every form obeys logic, almost a mathematical order. In Gris’s art, reality is replaced by an ideal model, clearer and more stable than reality itself.

Unlike Picasso, who fragments the world intuitively and emotionally, Gris builds an alternative reality where chaos is replaced by system, and chance by regularity. Guitars, bottles, chessboards, and newspapers exist not as things, but as algorithms of form, allowing the viewer to read the painting as an intellectual statement.

Thus, the substitution of reality in Juan Gris’s work is not an escape from the world, but an attempt to cleanse it of the accidental, reducing the visible to a universal, rational, and harmonious structure.

Anatoli Gostev was inspired by Gris's painting in works such as "Still Life with Fruits" and "Tolin's Corner." Gostev reflected on the experience of Juan Gris. Here is what he once said, quoting the artist:

The idea of "replacing reality," developed by the masters, implies that the real object is the painting itself, and the artist's task is to organize and construct the painting regardless of the depicted object, which can be distorted and reinterpreted beyond recognition. "It is not the painting that should correspond to the subject, but the subject that should correspond to the painting," said Juan Gris.

- Anatoli Gostev (1946 - 2022)

Unfortunately, Gris's life was short. He died at the age of 40, leaving behind a rich legacy that had a profound impact on the development of modern art. His works are distinguished by intellectual depth, refinement, and harmony, making him one of the most significant artists of the 20th century.

In assessing the work of Juan Gris, one may say that we are evaluating cubist constructivism elevated to its highest degree in search of a universal algorithm for conveying form. Relying on our own judgments and criteria, a sense of taste, and the emotional symbiosis of art and near-mathematics inherent in Gris’s work, we have selected four paintings. One of the dynasty’s statements reads:

The most difficult task is to ensure that a painting, despite the abstraction of the objects assembled within it, does not lose its charm and brings clarity to the viewer’s inner emotional order.

In his attempt to surpass Picasso, Gris created something of his own — an entry into the geometric progression of Cubism, with allegories of chessboards and guitar melodies reflecting the futility of calculation. The language of his painting appears as a confrontation of two worlds, marked by a progressively harmonious distortion.

The works by Juan Gris selected by us represent an evolution from pure contemplation toward a symbiosis with the sensory presence of objects:

Juan Gris - Chessboard Glass and Dish

1917 canvas 73 x 103 cm

Juan Gris - Open Window

1921 canvas 66 x 100 cm

Juan Gris - Bol et Cuillère

1923 canvas 15 x 18 cm

Juan Gris - Nature Morte à l'oeuf

1926 canvas 24 x 33 cm