Still Life

1976–1980

ink and crayon on paper

Audio description of the work

Drawn on a leaf of slightly larger than letter sized white paper is a dynamic arrangement of everyday objects drawn in blueish-metallic hues.

In this work Cohen has drawn a canister of paint thinner, a candle stick, a salt shaker and a can of root beer and arranged them in an equally spaced zigzag on the page, two in the background and two in the foreground. On the left the paint thinner is a rectangular tin which sits in the middle of the page and is half it’s height. The company name GRUMBACHER is printed down the side of the pale blue receptacle. The label is white and reads DILUANTS ODEUR PRE-TEST. Under this is a skull and crossbones to indicate it is poison. Just to the left of centre positioned with its base at the bottom of the page is a plain gray candlestick holder with a nub of a white candle. It is three quarters the height of the page. On the right side is a typical restaurant type glass salt shaker placed slightly higher than the candlestick and slightly shorter than half of the page height. It is a quarter full of white salt. Its glass sides appear with slightly diagonal edges as if its twisted to the right. Nestled into the bottom right corner is the top half of a can of root beer. Brown with a red label that has a mini mug of root beer at the top of it, the letters “I-R-E-S” are the end letters of the label’s brand. The can has been opened and the lid is entirely visible at an odd angle. On the left side of the can written vertically is the signature Leonard Cohen.

The other works on the same wall are similar line drawings, a kleenex tissue box and a heater as well as a floor to ceiling enlargement of a photobooth photo strip of Cohen in his 40’s. This work also marks a shift in the exhibition material from primarily photos and artifacts to paintings and drawings made by Cohen.

End of Audio Description.

Exhibition label text:

Central to Cohen’s personal taste and way of life was a deep attachment to everyday household objects, such as a table, chair, or mirror. There is a studied purpose to this still-life arrangement, with a can of paint thinner, a candlestick, a salt shaker, and a soda can forming a quartet of objects to which he has given his full attention.

End of Exhibition label text.