Juan Gris
Bottle and Glass
1917
Physical Qualities
Oil on canvas, Unframed: 21 1/2 × 13 in. (54.6 × 33 cm.)
Framed: 29 1/4 × 20 3/4 in. (74.3 × 52.7 cm.)
Credit Line
Bequest of Saidie A. May
Object Number
1951.305
Here, Juan Gris created a complex arrangement of mainly angular shapes, grouped on a wooden tabletop. While the contours of certain forms elude to a bottle and a glass, the distinct flatness of the composition refutes their existence. The oblique area of white and the letters "LE" and "AL" suggest a newspaper or journal (such as the French daily newspaper LE JOURNAL) that is often present in still lifes by the artist.
A native of Madrid, Spain, Gris settled in Paris, France in 1906, befriending a number of Cubist artists—most notably Pablo Picasso. Although he produced sculpture and graphics, as well as stage designs for Serge Diaghilev's (1872-1929) Ballets Russes ballet company, still-life genre remained his primary interest.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by bequest 1951; The Baltimore Museum of Art on extended loan, 1938-1951; Saidie A. May, by purchase 1938; from André Simon, Galerie Simon, Paris; Pierre Faure Collection
Jacques Seligmann and Co, New York, "Juan Gris", 1938, no. 27, ill.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A Century of Baltimore Collecting", 1941, p. 93.
Cincinnati Modern Art Society, 1948.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Saidie A. May Collection of Modern Paintings and Sculpture", March 1950, cat. 44.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "4,000 Years of Modern Art", 1956, no. 111, ill. p. 14.
The Pennsylvania State University Museum, State College, Pennsylvania, "Cubism", 1964
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Saidie A. May Collection", September 6-October 22, 1972, no. 76, ill.
Helen Molesworth and Katy Rothkopf, BMA, "European Abstraction from the Collection 1912-1948", February 28-December 2, 2001.
Darsie Alexander, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Mechanical Form/Mechanical Vision", December 12, 2001-April 7, 2002.
Sona Johnston, BMA organized, "The Art of Still Life from The Baltimore Museum of Art," circulated to The Academy Art Museum, Easton, August 3-October 6, 2007; and Mitchell Gallery, St. John's College, Annapolis, August 25, 2010-October 10, 2010.
Dallas Museum of Art, "Cubism in Color: The Still Lifes of Juan Gris", March 18, 2021- July 25, 2021 circulated to the Baltimore Museum of Art, September 12, 2021-January 9, 2022.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "A Century of Baltimore Collecting", 1941, p. 93.
Cincinnati Modern Art Society, 1948.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "The Saidie A. May Collection of Modern Paintings and Sculpture", March 1950, cat. 44.
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "4,000 Years of Modern Art", 1956, no. 111, ill. p. 14.
The Pennsylvania State University Museum, State College, Pennsylvania, "Cubism", 1964
The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Saidie A. May Collection", September 6-October 22, 1972, no. 76, ill.
Helen Molesworth and Katy Rothkopf, BMA, "European Abstraction from the Collection 1912-1948", February 28-December 2, 2001.
Darsie Alexander, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Mechanical Form/Mechanical Vision", December 12, 2001-April 7, 2002.
Sona Johnston, BMA organized, "The Art of Still Life from The Baltimore Museum of Art," circulated to The Academy Art Museum, Easton, August 3-October 6, 2007; and Mitchell Gallery, St. John's College, Annapolis, August 25, 2010-October 10, 2010.
Dallas Museum of Art, "Cubism in Color: The Still Lifes of Juan Gris", March 18, 2021- July 25, 2021 circulated to the Baltimore Museum of Art, September 12, 2021-January 9, 2022.
The Baltimore Museum of Art News, “Catalogue of the Saidie A. May Collection of Modern Paintings and Sculpture,” March, 1950, cat. 44, p.14.
Inscribed: Face: TRC, "Juan Gris/9-18"
