Considered a Modern master and an important figure of the Cuban Vanguardia Amelia Peález is best known for her colorful Cubist depictions of Cuban interiors and domesticity. Born in 1896 in Yaguajay, Peláez’s family relocated to Havana in 1915, where the artist later attended the San Alejandro Academy of Fine Art, completing her studies in 1924. Upon the completion of her studies, Peláez quickly began to exhibit in Havana. In 1927, she received a government grant to travel to Paris, where she would remain for 6 years. During her studies in Paris, Peláez studied under Russian constructivist artist, Alexandra Exter, excelling in courses on color theory and design. Peláez also drew great inspiration from works by contemporary avant-garde artists including Braque, Matisse, and Picasso, whose emphasis on symmetry, structure and bold colors appealed to the young artist. The present lot is a prime example of the artist’s early style, which was characterized by a darker color palette and experimentation with expressionist and cubist styles.

Pescados grises, is a stunning sill life composition rendered with great technical sophistication. In the center of the painting, the artist presents the viewer with a circular arrangement of fish and seashells. While Peláez’s use of dark grey and ochre tones imparts a melancholic feel to the composition, the application of white paint creates a stark contrast, adding light and warmth. The use of white tones not only serves to highlight key compositional elements, such as the large fish and shell in the foreground, but also creates a chiaroscuro effect. It can be argued that the rich color and texture of the piece, achieved by a generous application of paint and expressionistic brushstrokes was influenced, not only by the artist’s time in Paris, but also by her teacher at San Alejandro, Leopoldo Romañach. Romañach was a distinguished nineteenth century Cuban artist whose work was characterized by loose and painterly brushstrokes. The carefully constructed composition also has many cubist elements, including a flattened the picture plane, reducing the composition to a few color forms and emphasizing a central focal point and symmetry.

The still life as a subject matter is also important within Peláez’s oeuvre as it foreshadows many of her future works. Upon her return to Cuba in 1934, Peláez began to experiment with brighter colors and a more Cubist esthetic. She also began to include Cuban imagery in her still life compositions including tropical fruit and traditional stained glass windows found in Cuban homes. Although Peláez’s imagery radically shifted in her later works, she continued to use symbols that she had developed in Paris, most notably images of fish. While Peláez’s mature style differs greatly from the composition in Pescados grises, it is evident that the present lot served as a precursor to her later works and illustrates the artist’s early investigation into Cubism.