Throughout his career, William Goodridge Roberts’s artistic practice remained rooted in painting from direct observation. The motif of the still-life offered the artist a high degree of control over his subject, allowing him to set arrangements and execute compositions specifically suited to his interests. Rather than highlight the studio setting as in other works, here Roberts has opted for an ambiguous background made up of semi-cubist rectangular swathes of shifting tones. The window-like blue curtains activate the space with light and tonal variation, adding contrast with the earthy hues that dominate the painting. Roberts’s still-life paintings demonstrate a careful consideration of composition. The painter’s decision to arrange the tablecloth on a diagonal adds an immediate dynamism to the visual structure of the work.
