In “Still Life with Grapes,” André Evard creates an arrangement that appears almost surreal, deliberately playing with the conventions of the classical still life. On the right side of the picture stands a glass; however, a transparent, bubble-like overlay in the centre of the composition breaks through its form, making it appear shifted and doubled.
The central bubble is flanked by strongly stylised, reddish-brown bunches of grapes. Other fruits seem to float in space: a red apple is located within the bubble, while yellow lemons give the impression of having been placed into the goblet. The order of the classical still life is suspended in favour of a surreal pictorial logic.
The pictorial space presents a deliberately inconsistent architecture. A two-tiered table without legs, as well as indistinct wall formations that can be interpreted neither clearly as windows nor as spatial boundaries, destabilise spatial orientation. In doing so, Evard connects to the aesthetic of Pittura Metafisica, which emerged primarily in Italy (including Ferrara and Rome) between 1910 and the early 1920s and is characterised by enigmatic spaces and dreamlike object constellations.
The colour scheme is dominated by heavily greyed tones. Only the red apple and the yellow lemons provide contrasting accents, breaking up the otherwise muted palette.