Coquillage, 1961 (oil on canvas)

A colourful portrayal of a shell/rock. This is an untypical work by one of the best known Surrealist artists, although he produced similar subjects as early as 1928. This is a very beautiful depiction of what seems to be a flower, but Ernst’s title connects it with a shell formation, a living organism which has become fossilised. There is a strange ambiguity here where the attractive colours and shapes of the flower could act as a seductive danger to unsuspecting insects. However, these possible connections do not detract from our enjoyment of this small, figurative work produced in delicate colours.