Still Life with Pipe and Tray represents an atypical and rare work of Emil Filla, one of the most important painters of Czech Cubism. Filla discovered Cubism through meetings with Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque and Juan Gris during his trip to Paris before the First World War. With the support of Vincenc Kramář, he became one of its most ardent supporters. After the first cubist period, in which objects that build the plasticity of space with rational shapes and fragmentation of objects appeared in his paintings, Filla invented his characteristic expressive form of cubism, using objects of organic nature. Motifs of exotic fruits, fish, birds, flowers, pastries and baskets began to appear in his paintings. His still lifes combined organic nature with inorganic geometric forms. In the mid-1920s, Filla broke away from Picasso’s Cubism, and his creative virtuosity in colour started being fully manifested in his paintings. This shift is evident in Still Life with Pipe and Tray, in which, thanks to the combination of artistic techniques and the thickness of bright colours, he managed to create a harmonious work of high aesthetic quality. He constructed the composition dynamically, with colour intensity taking over the previous regular geometry. This painting presents a valuable collectible piece of Czech cubist art of the 1920s.

The painting was exhibited in the Regional Gallery of Fine Arts in Gottwaldov (Emil Filla: Paintings and Drawings from the Years 1906–1953, September – November 1963, cat. No. 20). There is the artist’s inventory No. F 244 in red pencil on the stretcher. The authenticity has been verified by the Filla Foundation, and the painting will be included in the forthcoming inventory of the artist’s work. Assessed during consultations by PhDr. R. Michalová, Ph.D., and Mgr. T. Donné. The expertise of PhDr. K. Srp and the restoration report of ak. mal. T. Berger are attached.