Light in the Study

An evocative mid-century interior painting that captures a quiet domestic study scene rendered with modernist abstraction, executed in oil onto canvas and dated 1951.

The composition is centred around a modest writing desk set against a softly fragmented wall, flanked by a chair and a stool. Overhead shelves cradle books and papers, while a stylised pendant light and a cupboard with colour-blocked panels add architectural intrigue.

To the left, a vase of red tulips placed on a counter offers a splash of natural warmth, creating a gentle contrast with the cool, muted palette of mint greens, dusky blues, pale purples, and earthy brows.

Executed in a flattened style, the artist plays with skewed perspectives and overlapping planes, lending the work a sense of spatial ambiguity and quiet introspection. The brushwork is smooth yet deliberate, with soft transitions in the background and more defined lines around furniture and decor, enhancing the painting’s structured yet intimate atmosphere.