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This Still Life shows a table with a vase with flowers, a ball of blue yarn and an eight-sided ceramic tray leaning against the wall. The composition is similar to the still lifes from 1935-1940, such as the one in the Museo Reina Sofía or the one from this same collection (inv. no. 94/120). What stands out in this one is the importance of the detail in the frame, the coolness of the light and the precision of the visual diaphragm. In his still lifes, Ucelay lets the objects speak for themselves.

His aesthetic, which is grounded in realism, can be pinned down to two coordinates: one, we could say, is related to content, or the character with which he treats the object; and the other, the more formal level, is the treatment of light. The former does not vary throughout the painter's oeuvre. From his earliest paintings to his last ones, the hauteur with which he portrays objects and people does not change; the flowers rise up from the vase in contrast to the serenity of the ball of yarn. In terms of the light, not only does he re-create the spirituality of the autumn, but it almost plays a role of abstract composition in the enamelled reflection on the ceramic tray. The composition is more than just the approximate inscription of the figures into a geometric mesh or a web of light; it is the centripetal narration inserted into a novelesque web invented by the author. It is a story in organised images.

As seen in his treatment of the flowers, in this still life Ucelay also remains faithful to the Oriental influence detected in his oeuvre, the "japonaiserie" which he assimilates through three different sources: the French revival in the late 19th century (visible in the Goncourt brothers and the post-Impressionists), ceramics and the objects from one of his great-great-grandfathers conserved in his house in Chirapozu. Ucelay drew from the delicacy of the Oriental engravings on screens and lacquered trays to create this painting, where drawing, colour and that atmosphere of magical realism yield a composition brimming with subtlety and harmony.

In this painting, Ucelay portrays everyday objects in an everyday place, but their combination and frame achieve that mysterious atmosphere which is so close to the photography of the German Herbert List or the American Edwards Weston. Their frames of light and shadow obey Ucelay's same way of looking at the objects in his house and the landscapes of Busturia. List's definition that works of fine art are "visions made visible" can be applied to all three artists. In their works, we find this strength of thought revealing the opposition between spontaneity of the things and reflection. (Kosme de Barañano)

Selected bibliography

• Barañano, Kosme María de. La obra pictórica de José María de Ucelay : análisis biográfico y estético. Bilbao, Fundación Bilbao Bizkaia Kutxa = Bilbao Bizkaia Kutxa Fundazioa, 1997. pp. 78, 203. N° cat. 269.
• De Picasso a Bacon : arte contemporáneo en las colecciones del Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao [Cat. exp.]. Segovia, Museo de Arte Contemporánea Esteban Vicente, 1999. pp. 70-71 y p. 157.
• Barañano, Kosme María de. La obra pictórica de José María de Ucelay : análisis biográfico y estético [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Caja de Ahorros Vizcaina, Departamento Cultural, 1981. p. 192. N° cat. 269
• Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. pp. 176-177.
• Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. pp. 176-177.
• Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2006. pp. 176-177.
• Moya Valgañon, Adelina; Mayor López, Gorka. José María de Ucelay. Segovia, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo Esteban Vicente, 2007. pp. 98-99, fig. 80.
• Guía Artistas Vascos. Bilbao, Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2008. pp. 110-112.
• Gida Euskal Artistak. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Eder Museoa, 2008. pp. 110-111.
• Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao : guía. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2011. pp. 176-177, n° cat. 125a.
• Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa : gida. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2012. pp. 176-177, n° cat. 125a.
• Guide Basque Artists. Bilbao, Bilbao Fine Arts Museum, 2012. pp. 110-112, n° cat. 57a.
• Arte japonés y japonismo [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. p. 35, il.
• Musée des Beaux Arts de Bilbao : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. pp. 176-177.
• Bilbao Fine Arts Museum : guide. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2014. pp. 176-177.
• 110 Años 110 Obras [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 248-249, sin n° cat.
• 110 Ans 110 Oeuvres [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 248-249, sin n° cat.
• 110 Urte 110 Artelan [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 248-249, sin n° cat.
• 110 Years 110 Works [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 248-249, sin n° cat.
• Bilboko Museoaren alfabetoa = El alfabeto del Museo de Bilbao = The alphabet of the Bilbao Museum = L'alphabet du Musée de Bilbao [Cat. exp.]. Bilbao, Bilboko Arte Ederren Museoa-Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao, 2018. pp. 256-257, n° cat. 149.