Contact gallery for price		Gerald Vivian Davis American, early 20th century Allegorical Still Life Oil on canvas 27 3/4 x 22 1/4 inches Signed lower right: Gerald Davis Gerald Davis studied at some of the most recognized art schools in Paris: École des Beaux Arts, the Académie Julian, with Dechenard and Royer, and finally at the Académie Grande Chaumière. He was also a member of the Société Nationale des Beaux-Arts and Salon National Independents in Paris. He participated in several important exhibitions in both Europe and the US, including group as well as solo shows. From 1929 to 1939 he exhibited regularly at the Paris Salon, and at the Salon d’Automne from 1930 to 1939 as well as in London and Copenhagen. In the US he exhibited, amongst other places, at the Art Institute in Chicago in 1928, Kansas City Nelson Art Museum in 1951, and Trenton Art Museum and Newark Museum in 1968. During this time he received several important awards that helped establish him as a highly recognized artist. In 1960 he received the award of Contemporary New Jersey Artists, in 1968 the New Jersey State show at the East Orange Art Center, and in 1969 he was rewarded at the Summit Art Center. Today many of his works appear in private collections around the world. In our painting Allegorical Still Life, Gerald Davis has depicted a scene with an air of both beauty and mystique. The atmosphere keeps the viewer captivated, reviewing the composition and trying to decipher the relationship between the objects in front of us. At the foreground is a small table with a few significant objects, including a vase with flowers, a few books and a candle; thus rendering it an allegory of the arts via literature and music, as the mask seems to represent the face of Ludwig van Beethoven. The flowers are situated at the left side of the painting; their brilliant red and yellow colors, interspersed with greenery, create a beautiful contrast to the somber palette. The open blossoms serenely face the viewer while simultaneously reaching out from the heart of the arrangement. An extended branch of greenery is stretching out over the table, flirtatiously touching the candle at the other side.