#44022 Bernard Cathelin (1919-2004)

The composition presents a fragmented still life, rendered in a palette dominated by muted earth tones – ochre, mauve, and grey – punctuated with areas of deep blue and touches of crimson. The artist has eschewed traditional perspective, instead opting for a flattened pictorial space where objects appear to overlap and intersect without clear spatial relationships.
Here we see what appears to be a vessel, possibly ceramic or metallic, centrally positioned but partially obscured by other forms. Its surface is rendered with thick impasto, suggesting texture and volume despite the overall lack of depth. To its left, a rectangular shape – perhaps a table or wall – is delineated through contrasting planes of color, creating an illusion of recession that is immediately undermined by the painting’s general ambiguity.
The right side of the canvas features what seems to be a draped cloth or fabric, its folds and contours suggested with broad brushstrokes and a limited range of hues. The absence of precise outlines contributes to the sense of abstraction; forms dissolve into one another, blurring the distinction between object and background.
A key characteristic is the artist’s deliberate use of broken color – small areas of pure hue juxtaposed against more blended tones. This technique generates visual vibration and prevents the image from becoming overly static. The overall effect is one of controlled chaos; a sense of order emerges not through representational accuracy, but through the careful arrangement of chromatic relationships.
Subtly, theres an impression of melancholy or introspection conveyed by the subdued color scheme and the fragmented nature of the forms. The objects are not presented as celebratory symbols of abundance, but rather appear isolated and somewhat forlorn within their ambiguous setting. This suggests a focus on interiority – a contemplation of form and color divorced from narrative content. The painting seems to explore the inherent qualities of the materials themselves, prioritizing visual sensation over mimetic representation.