Still Life with Anenomes
- Artist: Othon Friesz
- Date: (circa) 1922
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Museum: The Courtauld Gallery
- Collection record: The Courtauld Gallery website
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About this artwork
This is the “Still Life with Anenomes” by Othon Friesz, painted around 1922. Friesz, a post‑Impressionist from the early 20th‑century French scene, turns a quiet kitchen corner into a study of light and texture. The canvas is oil on canvas, and you can see his deft handling of paint—rich, layered glazes that give the fruit a soft, almost luminous quality.
Notice how the lemon sits beside the bowl of anenomes, its bright yellow rim catching the light from the left. The shadow it casts falls neatly across the wood table, hinting at a modest indoor space. The background is almost a wash of muted greens and ochres, creating depth without competing with the foreground objects. Friesz's brushwork here is loose yet controlled; he layers thin strokes to build form, a hallmark of his late style when he was experimenting with more fluid, almost Fauvist color schemes.
The composition balances stillness and movement. The anenomes, with their rounded, slightly translucent surfaces, suggest a sense of quiet decay, contrasting the lively freshness of the lemon. This interplay between life and quiet weariness invites the viewer to linger, to consider the fleeting nature of everyday beauty. The overall effect is a tender, almost nostalgic scene that feels timeless, even though it was created nearly a century ago.
See it in person
Still Life with Anenomes hangs in The Courtauld Gallery at Somerset House, London. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
