Cubism and the Trompe l'Oeil Tradition

Emily Braun and Elizabeth Cowling
with contributions by Claire Le Thomas and Rachel Mustalish

The age-old tradition of pictorial illusionism known as trompe l'oeil ("deceive the eye") employs visual tricks that confound the viewer's perception of reality and fiction, truth and falsehood. This radically new take on Cubism shows how Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Juan Gris both parodied and paid homage to classic trompe l'oeil themes and motifs. The authors connect Cubist works to trompe l'oeil specialists of earlier centuries by juxtaposing more than one hundred Cubist paintings,drawings, and collages with related compositions by old masters. The informed and engaging texts trace the changing status of trompe l'oeil over the centuries, reveal Braque's training in artisanal trompe l'oeil techniques as an integral part of his Cubist practice, examine the material used in Gris's collages, and discuss the previously unstudied trompe l'oeil iconography within Cubist still lifes.

Emily Braun is Distinguished Professor of Art History at Hunter College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York, and Curator of the Leonard A. Lauder Collection.

Elizabeth Cowling is Professor Emeritus and Honorary Fellow in the History of Art at the University of Edinburgh.