Violin Hanging on a Wall 1913

Juan Gris made this line drawing of a violin, hanging on a wall. It’s all hard edges and shifting planes, rendered in pencil, charcoal, and crayon. I'm imagining Gris in his studio, grappling with the challenge of representing three-dimensional space on a flat surface. What’s so amazing about this drawing is the way it feels simultaneously representational and abstract. The violin is clearly recognizable, but it’s also broken down into geometric shapes. The blue and green stripes of the wall create this weird, fractured space, pushing and pulling against the violin. It’s like Gris is saying, “I can show you what a violin looks like, but I can also show you how seeing works.” You can really see how Cubism was like this awesome conversation between artists like Picasso, Braque, and Gris, each pushing the boundaries. It makes you realize that art isn’t just about making pretty pictures, it’s about thinking, experimenting, and constantly questioning how we perceive the world.