Ellen Thesleff:
Still Life

Colour stole into the art of Ellen Thesleff (1869–1954) in the early 1900s, as she shifted to a new technique based on studies of light and colour. Thesleff’s colourism reached a peak in Italy, particularly Florence, where she spent a lot of time in the early years of the century. Still Life (1917) represents this period in the artist’s career. The stylised fruit in this light-filled work glow in the soft tones of blue, violet, green and pink for which the artist is known.