Still Life with Carnations, Apples and a Clock 1944

Alexandru Ciucurencu's ‘Still Life with Carnations, Apples and a Clock’ is a riot of brushstrokes, a vivid dance of thick paint in the pursuit of capturing, not copying, a still life scene. Imagine the studio, the air thick with the scent of oil paint, the artist’s hand moving intuitively, laying down strokes of colour. You can almost feel the energy and speed of the artist, here. See how the clock face melts into the scene, a reminder of the fleeting nature of time, as the oranges take on a playful, almost cartoonish quality. The black stripes beneath are like musical notes on a page, and the pink carnations vibrate against the grey sky. It’s like Ciucurencu is having a conversation with Cezanne, but also charging ahead in his own voice, because all painters learn from and respond to one another, in a visual, sometimes unconscious conversation, across time.