Amaryllis 

Henri Le Fauconnier made this charcoal drawing, titled Amaryllis, at some point during his career. Although undated, we can consider it within the context of Fauconnier's engagement with Cubism and his role in the pre-war Parisian avant-garde. The drawing presents us with a still life, but it's fractured into geometric forms. In the background, we see shapes that suggest light rays, or perhaps segments of a larger flower. This technique recalls Cubist strategies of fragmentation, where objects are broken down into constituent parts and reassembled on the canvas. Fauconnier was active in circles that questioned traditional modes of representation. We can think of the Salon exhibitions of the time, such as the Salon d'Automne, as spaces for artistic experimentation. To understand this work further, we might look into Fauconnier's relationship with other Cubist painters, or study the emergence of avant-garde art institutions in Paris. Art history helps us understand how an artwork is embedded in its time.