Oil on card 59 x 66 cm, framed. Signed 'K.X. Roussel' in grey paint lower left. - Laid on panel (parqueted). The edges slightly bumped due to framing. With minor retouchings in places along the outer margins.
Rau Collection for UNICEF
Roussel is known for his many still lifes with flower bouquets; they reflect his joy in the subject. Through the dabbed and playful application of colour as well as the unusual arrangement of branches in front of the suggested interior the composition appears spontaneous, although nothing has been left to chance. The somewhat bold asymmetry causes a certain tension in the image and the classical subject is represented effectively by the use of light - slightly Japonised and decorative but in no way boring.
Certificate
We would like to thank Yann Bellier, Boulogne, as well as the great-grandson Olivier Roussel, L'Etang la Ville, for kindly providing confirmatory information. The work will be included in the Cat. Rais. of Ker Xavier Roussel currently under preparation.
Provenance
Sotheby's London, Impressionist and Contemporary Paintings, Drawings, Watercolours and Sculpture 13 Feb. 1985, lot 1, cat. with b/w illus. (on the side; titled "Branches de pommier" and described "oil on canvas"); Christie's London, Impressionist and Modern Paintings and Sculpture (Part II), 3.12.1985, lot 127 (described here as "oil on cradled board")
Exhibitions
Paris 1946 (Galerie Charpentier), Tableaux de la vie silencieuse, no. 60