Interlude

About the Artwork

In Pierre Dubreuil's carefully planned still life, ordinary objects—a musical score, tuning fork, and eye glasses—are given an air of mystery. The photograph reveals the artist's interest in bold light and shadow patterns, strong contrasts of tone, and distorted scale and perspective, achieved through the use of a close-up viewpoint and an unusual camera angle. A pioneering modernist little known until recently, Dubreuil's preoccupation with the dream world and the human psychological condition linked him with the Surrealists of Brussels and Paris.

Inscriptions

Written in pencil on recto: artist's monogram; "Entracte"; in blue ink on verso: "79 [?]"; "Entr'act."; in pencil: "P. Dubreuil, M.L.[?] S.P."; in black ink: "No. 1 [underlined]- / Propriete de G. GHEUDE [underlined]- / Président A.B.P.C. / Bruxelles [underlined]"; in pencil: "D 098 / M"; in red crayon: "Z"

Exhibition history

The Year in Review for 1987. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 24-April 17, 1988). Legacy of Light: Master Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 24, 1996-February 2, 1997).

Quick Overview

Artist: Pierre Dubreuil (French, 1872–1944)
Date: 1932
Medium: oil print, Rawlins oil print process
Dimensions: Image: 24.6 x 19.4 cm (9 11/16 x 7 5/8 in.); Matted: 50.8 x 40.6 cm (20 x 16 in.)
Type: Photograph
Classification: Photograph
Department: Photography
Credit line: John L. Severance Fund
Accession no.: 1987.217

Provenance

G. Gheude, Brussels

Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.