Daisies

A vibrant still life, this painting features a prominent vase of daisies on a tabletop, bursting with color against a backdrop of bold, unmodulated fields. The large areas of black, blue, and red reflect a growing interest in abstraction, a formal effect the artist termed "ballast," signifying stability. Created in 1939, just months before France declared war on Germany, this work carries a poignant history. It was first owned by the influential modern art dealer Paul Rosenberg, a Jewish dealer targeted by the Nazis. The painting was among the many works seized from his collection when he was forced to flee France. After the war, it was restituted to Rosenberg, who brought it to his new gallery in New York, a testament to its survival and the resilience of art in tumultuous times.