Nature Morte Aux Fleurs - Maximilien Luce

A 1926 still life by Maximilien Luce, featuring chrysanthemums in a rhythmic, textured style that captures the interplay of light and colour.

Maximilien Luce, a painter associated with the Neo-Impressionist movement, produced this still life in 1926. The composition features a collection of chrysanthemums arranged in two distinct vessels. A larger, dark vase holds the primary bouquet, while a smaller container supports a secondary cluster of blooms. Several individual stems lie scattered across the foreground surface, adding a sense of casual arrangement to the scene.

Luce employs a technique characterised by short, rhythmic brushstrokes. This method creates a textured surface that captures the play of light across the petals and the fabric backdrop. The colour palette relies on the contrast between the warm, autumnal tones of the flowers—ranging from deep crimson to pale yellow—and the cool, teal-toned background. The background itself is rendered with vertical, directional strokes that suggest a draped textile, providing a neutral yet active setting for the floral subjects.

While Luce is frequently recognised for his industrial scenes and depictions of the Parisian working class, his still life works demonstrate his technical focus on light and colour theory. By 1926, his style had moved away from the strict pointillist dots of his earlier career toward a more fluid, expressive application of paint. This work reflects his interest in the domestic interior, where he applied the same analytical approach to light that he used in his outdoor subjects. The arrangement avoids rigid symmetry, opting instead for a balanced distribution of colour and form across the canvas. The interplay between the dark, solid forms of the vases and the delicate, fragmented shapes of the flowers creates a visual tension that defines the piece. This print captures the specific impasto and colour relationships of the original oil painting, offering a clear view of Luce's late-career brushwork.