Still Life with Ricer also known as Still Life with Garlic Press 1918

Diego Rivera made this quiet painting – Still Life with Ricer – probably in the 1910s or early 20s, with oils on canvas. It's a collection of kitchenalia sitting on what looks like an old dresser or cabinet. The limited color palette, mostly browns, creamy whites and muted golds, gives the piece a sense of humility and calm. You can almost imagine Rivera contemplating these humble objects: a pitcher, a bowl, a spoon, a ricer, and a humble garlic press, maybe wondering how to make them sing on the canvas. The surface has a velvety quality, and the brushstrokes are soft, blending the forms together. It’s a far cry from Rivera's huge, public murals, but it makes you wonder if this wasn’t a place of retreat for the artist. A space of contemplation and experimentation where he could distill the everyday into something enduring. It reminds me that artists throughout time have taken comfort in still life, turning the ordinary into something extraordinary.