Painted in 1950, Still Life with Flowers #479 is a classic example of Jack Beder’s early still life work. The composition centers on a glass vase filled with cut flowers, likely asters, in a mix of lavender, red, pink, and white. The bouquet is positioned on a wooden table alongside a yellow ceramic cup, a darker mug, a glass liquor bottle with a label, and a loosely draped white cloth.

Beder uses oil paint with visible brushwork to emphasize texture and depth. The flowers are rendered with loose but deliberate strokes, while the objects on the table are carefully shaded to create a sense of weight and placement. The palette combines warm tones, yellows, reds, and earth browns, with neutral greys and soft greens, set against a darker background of wooden cabinetry and a blue wall.

This work was exhibited in several notable venues during the early 1950s. It was included in a 1952 exhibition at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, followed by two solo shows in 1954: one at the Robertson Gallery in Ottawa and another at the Wm. R. Wolfe Gallery in Montreal. These exhibitions put this painting within a formative period in Beder’s career, when his still lifes and urban scenes were gaining increased critical and institutional attention.

This oil on masonite measures 20 x 16 inches and is signed by the artist on the lower right. It is featured on page 143 of Jack Beder: Life and Art in Canada (2025), a publication by Rookleys Canadian Art Gallery. Acquired directly from the artist’s estate, it is catalogued as inventory #479.

This piece was also included in the Jack Beder: Life and Art in Canada exhibition at Rookleys Canadian Art Gallery.