Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 13
Still life by Nicolas Poliakoff
$9,474.56
£7,076.24
€8,000
CA$13,157.78
A$14,128.17
CHF 7,602.10
MX$167,193.03
NOK 95,772.61
SEK 87,349.97
DKK 60,969.67
About the Item
Nicolas Poliakoff (1899–1976)
Still Life with Pitcher, Fruit Bowl, Bottle, and Books, oil on canvas, signed lower right “N. Poliakoff”.
In this still life, Nicolas Poliakoff condenses familiar studio objects into a constructively built pictorial order. The pitcher, bottle, and books are presented as geometric volumes. While the cloth and background drapery divide the space into flat zones of color, Poliakoff thus combines the tradition of the Parisian still life with a post-Cubist grammar.
Within this grammar, drawing, edge definition, and color planes create a balanced field of tension. The work is exemplary of Poliakoff’s position within the École de Paris. It is modern in form, yet consciously oriented toward a classical compositional discipline.
Short Biography
Nicolas Poliakoff (also: Poliakov/Poliakoff) belongs to the generation of the École de Paris. After 1925, Paris became an international center of modern art. He initially studied in Belgrade and arrived in Paris in 1925. There, he worked and taught in the circle of André Lhote. His work primarily explores still life, figure/nude, and portraiture.
It is characterized by a constructive, Cubist-influenced approach to form. Objects and bodies are constructed using planes, edges, and clearly contrasting color fields. Poliakoff thus represents a “classical modernism” that utilizes the Cubist method of composition. However, he does not dissolve the object itself.
Nicolas Poliakoff
Nicolas Poliakoff (Russian: Nikolai Georgievich Poliakov / Поляков; July 22, 1899 – July 1, 1976) belonged to the École de Paris. This was the internationally influenced generation of artists who chose Paris as their center of work and exhibitions during the interwar period. In contemporary art, he is primarily perceived as a Cubist-influenced painter of figures and still lifes.
He is considered less an avant-gardist in the radical sense, but rather a consistent representative of “classical modernism.” He maintains a balance between construction, drawing, and color fields.
Origin, Education, Arrival in Paris
Poliakoff was born in Ukraine; his birthplace is often given as Aleksandrovsk (historical name; today Zaporizhzhia/Zaporizhzhia). He received his initial artistic training at the École des Beaux-Arts in Belgrade (October 1921–July 1925). In October 1925, he moved to Paris, where he studied at the Académie André Lhote (18, rue d’Odessa).
The “Lhote School” as a defining constant in his life
Crucially, Poliakoff was not merely a student. From 1926, he served as a “massier” (organizational officer within the Academy) and became André Lhote’s assistant—until Lhote’s death in 1962. According to sources, he also taught there until 1965. This places Poliakoff within a tradition that understands Cubism less as the destruction of the object and more as a methodical pictorial architecture (construction based on axes, planes, and proportions).
Studio, Parisian Milieu, Louvre
From the 1930s onward, Poliakoff worked in the Montparnasse district. Until his death, he maintained a studio at 278 Boulevard Raspail. He was also a licensed copyist at the Louvre. This underscores the importance that disciplined drawing, the study of models, and tradition held in his self-conception.
Work and Style: Constructive Figuration
Depending on the period, Poliakoff’s works range from figure and nude to portrait, still life, and landscape. A constructed form is characteristic of his work. In this process, bodies and objects are transformed into angular volumes and clearly contrasting fields of color.
From an art historical perspective, this can be described as a “Cubist grammar.” It is not primarily collage or fragment, but rather a system of order. Space is organized through surface sections; contour and internal detail remain important, and color supports the construction (rather than dissolving it). This affinity with Lhote’s teaching tradition is stylistically quite plausible.
Exhibitions and Visibility in the Parisian Exhibition System
Poliakoff was a regular presence in the classic Parisian exhibition circuit: among others, at the Salon d’Automne (1926–1928) and for decades at the Salon des Artistes Indépendants (mentioned in sources until 1976). He also exhibited in galleries in Paris and participated in occasional shows abroad (e.g., Belgrade, Boston).
Relationship to Serge Poliakoff
In key artist biographies, Nicolas is listed as the brother of Serge Poliakoff (1900–1969). (Occasionally, differing information appears in auction descriptions; therefore, for reliable provenance information, one should preferably rely on reference data/archives.)
Death and Legacy
Poliakoff died in Paris in 1976. His oeuvre is encountered today primarily in the art market and at auctions. From an art historical perspective, he is particularly interesting as an intersection between the academic tradition (Lhote), the Salon system, and a “moderate” modernism that combines figuration and Cubist construction.
- Creator:Nicolas Poliakoff (Artist)
- Dimensions:Height: 39.77 in (101 cm)Width: 34.65 in (88 cm)Depth: 3.94 in (10 cm)
- Style:Art Deco (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1935
- Condition:
- Seller Location:Wiesbaden, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU10654248365102
About the Seller
New to 1stDibs
Joined in the past six months.
No Reviews Yet
Vetted Professional Seller
Every seller passes strict standards for authenticity and reliability
Established in 2000
1stDibs seller since 2025
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Shipping from: Wiesbaden, Germany
- Return Policy
More From This Seller
View AllHeinz Tetzner “Flower Still Life”
Located in Wiesbaden, DE
Floral Still Life by Heinz Tetzner
In this small-format floral still life, Heinz Tetzner presents a vibrant, impasto composition. Against a warm, dark brown background, a few blossom...
Category
Vintage 1980s Expressionist Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Hardwood
Cubist still life with violin, signed “Gilberte Schmitt”
Located in Wiesbaden, DE
Cubist Still Life with Violin
Gilberte Schmitt (1907–2001)
Still Life with Violin
This work presents a Cubist-structured still life featuring the motif of a violin, constructed from...
Category
Vintage 1930s Art Deco Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Hardwood
Cubist painting by Sigismund Kolos-Vary “Woman with Tulip”, 1936
Located in Wiesbaden, DE
Woman with Tulip
Sigismund Kolos-Vary (1899–1983) was a Hungarian-Austrian painter of the Classical Modern period.
After his academic training, he worked primarily in Central Europe...
Category
Vintage 1930s Art Deco Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Hardwood
Gitane Color Lithograph, Art Deco Style, Signed, 1939, 59x69 cm
By Louis Icart
Located in Wiesbaden, DE
Lithograph by Louis Icart
The color lithograph "Gitane" by Louis Icart (1880–1950) is a stunning example of the exquisite art of Art Deco. A master of elegance and sensuality in pri...
Category
Vintage 1930s Art Deco Paintings
Materials
Glass, Hardwood, Paper
Bernard Buffet Signed Lithograph, Art Deco, 1930s Hardwood Paper
Located in Wiesbaden, DE
Bernard Buffet
Bernard Buffet (1928-1999) was a French painter and graphic artist. He became known for his characteristic style, often referred to as “l’homme tout seul” (the lonely...
Category
Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Paintings
Materials
Hardwood, Paper
Polar Bear Watercolor and Charcoal, Art Deco, Circa 1925-1935, Paper
Located in Wiesbaden, DE
Fernand Bégué, “Polar Bear”
Fernand Bégué, a prominent artist of the Art Deco period, created a masterful depiction of an animal with his work “Polar Bear” between 1925 and 1935. It ...
Category
Vintage 1920s Art Deco Paintings
Materials
Paper
You May Also Like
Nicolas Issaiev, Still Life with Fruits, Original Oil Painting, Ca. 1920’s
By Nikolai Alexandrovich Isaev
Located in New York, NY
Nicolas Issaiev (a/k/a Nikolai Alexandrovich Isaev, Russian-French, 1891-1977) was a painter, graphic artist, set designer, illustrator.
In the early 1900s he studied in art scho...
Category
Vintage 1920s French Expressionist Paintings
Materials
Canvas
Still Life Painting
Located in Washington, DC
Still life painting of fruit in a basket. Oil on silk.
Category
Antique 19th Century French French Provincial Paintings
Materials
Silk, Wood
$2,700
Bouquet Still Life
Located in Queens, NY
Copy of a still life painting titled "Bouquet" showing red, yellow and white flowers in a glass vase
Condition: Good; Wear consistent with age and use
Category
Late 20th Century American Victorian Paintings
Materials
Glass
$4,200
Bouquet Still Life
By Breaad
Located in Queens, NY
Copy of a still life painting titled "Bouquet" showing tulips and other flowers in a classical setting
Category
Late 20th Century American Louis XIV Paintings
Materials
Paint
$5,500
Still-Life, Gouache by Byron Randall
Located in Pasadena, CA
Artist Byron Randall, Signed and Dated.
A post-impressionist expressive still life. In the top left a vase with luxurious flowers, while in the forefront there is a banana in a small fruit bowl...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Paintings
Materials
Paper
$274 Sale Price
71% Off
Still Life with Flowers by M. Roblie
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Continental school still life from the Late 19th century of flowers with a vase and bird, signed "M. Roblie" lower right.
Dimensions:
Sight: 30" H x 20" W; Frame: 38" H x 27" W.
Category
Antique 19th Century Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Wood, Paint
