Here, Juan Gris created a complex arrangement of mainly angular shapes, grouped on a wooden tabletop. While the contours of certain forms elude to a bottle and a glass, the distinct flatness of the composition refutes their existence. The oblique area of white and the letters "LE" and "AL" suggest a newspaper or journal (such as the French daily newspaper LE JOURNAL) that is often present in still lifes by the artist. A native of Madrid, Spain, Gris settled in Paris, France in 1906, befriending a number of Cubist artists—most notably Pablo Picasso. Although he produced sculpture and graphics, as well as stage designs for Serge Diaghilev's (1872-1929) Ballets Russes ballet company, still-life genre remained his primary interest.