by Tom Gurney
Tom Gurney BSc (Hons) is an art history expert with over 20 years experience
Published on June 19, 2020 / Updated on September 28, 2026
Email: tomgurney1@gmail.com / Phone: +44 7429 011000
About the painting
A single pale gladiolus rises through dark and mauve-grey space in Piet Mondrian's Gladiolus. Its green stalk bends slightly as the flower opens into broad cream and yellow-white petals. This is the work reproduced on this page: C108 in the Mondrian catalogue, rather than the earlier gladiolus C107 or the red gladioli in Minneapolis. The 2019 Sotheby's catalogue records it as oil on canvas laid down on board, measuring 35.4 × 21.2 cm. RKD dates C108 to circa 1936 and lists it in a private collection. Sotheby's gives a broader circa 1930–38 date and describes it as painted in London. Those two descriptions should not be collapsed into an exact year and place.[1][2]
At a glance
- ArtistPiet Mondrian (Piet Mondriaan, 1872–1944)
- TitleGladiolus
- Catalogue identityRKD / Joosten C108
- Datecirca 1936 in RKD; circa 1930–38 in Sotheby's 2019 catalogue
- MediumOil on canvas laid down on board
- Dimensions35.4 cm high × 21.2 cm wide
- CollectionPrivate collection in RKD's catalogue
- Lower-right wording“Piet Mondrian London - Period,” inscribed by another hand, according to Sotheby's[1][2]
Gladiolus among Mondrian's flower studies
Contents
- What does the painting show?
- When and where was it painted?
- What is known about its ownership?
- How is it different from Mondrian's other gladioli?
What does the painting show?
The canvas is tall and narrow, fitted to the gladiolus's upward growth. A green stalk rises from the lower half and curves toward a group of open, pale blossoms. Cream, yellow and white strokes mark the petals; a few touches of blue and darker green sharpen their edges. Some flowers face us, while others tilt to the side. Their overlapping forms give the cluster movement without requiring a vase, table or room around it.
 The Red Tree Piet Mondrian.jpg)
The background changes across the picture. A near-black vertical passage holds the left edge. To the right, grey and muted mauve allow the light blooms to show clearly. Darker marks among the petals break up what could otherwise be one bright mass. The flower's pale upper forms and the vertical black area pull against one another, making the slim image feel wider than its actual 21.2 cm.
The lower portion looks spare beside the worked flower head. That appearance is visible in the existing image, but it does not by itself establish that Mondrian considered the painting unfinished. Nor does the dark upright area prove that the flower was placed against a particular wall or window. The picture offers a concentrated flower study; the precise setting is not documented in the object records used here.[2]
When and where was it painted?
The date deserves care. RKD's entry for C108 says circa 1936. Sotheby's 2019 lot description says circa 1930–38 and “Painted in London.” Yet Kunstmuseum Den Haag's Mondrian biography places his move from Paris to London in 1938. An object cannot straightforwardly be both painted in London around 1936 and made by Mondrian after his 1938 move. These public descriptions may reflect different estimates or interpretations, but they do not establish a certain year and studio. The article therefore gives each source's wording rather than choosing an unsupported exact date.[1][2][3]
The words “Piet Mondrian London - Period” at lower right can look like an artist's signature and date clue in a reproduction. Sotheby's explicitly says the inscription is by another hand. It is evidence that someone later identified or labelled the work as belonging to a London period; it is not an autograph inscription establishing where Mondrian painted it. This distinction is especially useful here because the catalogue dates are already unsettled.[2]
The flower also stands apart from the black-line grids for which Mondrian is best known. That does not make it an artistic reversal or a coded statement about his abstract work. The Sotheby's essay discussing the painting describes his continued attention to natural forms and the force of these few brushstrokes. We can see a recognisable plant, broad strokes and strong colour contrasts. Any claim about a specific commission, buyer or symbolic meaning would need evidence beyond the public records cited here.[4]
Watch: Piet Mondrian
See his studio, the move toward geometric abstraction and the rhythms of his New York paintings.
Piet Mondrian: Abstract Painting as We Know It
Curator Michael White explores the paintings and Mondrian’s studio as an abstract space.
Watch on YouTubeWhat is known about its ownership?
The Sotheby's catalogue provides a provenance sequence. Ernst Leijden had the painting by 1939. It passed by descent to a private collection in 1969. J. P. Smid in Amsterdam acquired it by 1979. A private Amsterdam collection offered it at Sotheby's London on 1 July 1981, where Waddington Galleries bought it. Waddington offered it at Sotheby's London on 4 December 1985; the buyer at that sale was described as the owner in the 2019 lot catalogue. These are the stated catalogue steps, not a claim that every intervening transfer is known.[2]
The same 2019 lot identifies the painting as C108 in Joop M. Joosten's catalogue raisonné. Its dimensions and unusual lower-right inscription also help distinguish this object from similarly titled gladiolus studies. The sale page does not publish a freely visible result, and it does not establish the identity of the present owner. RKD's private-collection description is the appropriate public-level location statement for this page.[1][2]
How is it different from Mondrian's other gladioli?
RKD lists four adjacent but distinct entries. C107, also called Gladiolus, is an earlier work dated approximately 1907–09 and associated with the Kröller-Müller Museum. C108 is the pale single flower reproduced here. C109, Gladioli in a bottle, is another separate entry with a broad circa 1908–30 date. C110 is the red cluster linked to Minneapolis Institute of Art accession 91.148.4.[1]
The site's Gladioli in a Bottle page shows that Minneapolis C110 image and explains its museum title, Red Gladioli. It should not inherit C108's dimensions, possible London attribution or provenance. Conversely, the pale single flower here is not the red Minneapolis painting. The distinction lets a reader move between similarly named pages without treating their facts as interchangeable.
Mondrian artworks directory
Frequently asked questions
Which Gladiolus painting is shown here?
Did Mondrian sign “London period” on it?
Sotheby's calls the lower-right wording an inscription by another hand. It should not be presented as Mondrian's own signature or proof of the painting's date.[2]
When did Mondrian paint Gladiolus?
What size and medium is the painting?
Sotheby's records oil on canvas laid down on board, 35.4 × 21.2 cm.[2]
Where is the painting now?
Discussion
Which pale gladiolus bloom first catches your eye?
Reader Insights
Follow the green stalk upward. Where does your eye stop?
How does the black strip change the pale flower?
Why must C108 be kept separate from the red Minneapolis gladioli, C110?
Join the Conversation
Share what you notice in this painting below.
References
- RKD – Netherlands Institute for Art History, digital Mondrian catalogue, “Flower representations,” including Gladiolus C107 and C108 and gladioli C109 and C110. View source.
- Sotheby's, Impressionist & Modern Art Day Sale, 20 June 2019, lot 386, Gladiolus: material, dimensions, inscription, dating, provenance and Joosten C108 citation. View source.
- Kunstmuseum Den Haag, “Biography,” recording Mondrian's move from Paris to London in 1938. View source.
- Sotheby's, “Two Magnificent Mondrian Works Reveal the Artist's Experimentation with Naturalism,” discussion of the gladiolus image and flower practice. View source.
- Lead image credit. Piet Mondrian, Gladiolus, RKD C108; oil on canvas laid down on board, 35.4 × 21.2 cm. RKD dates it c. 1936; Sotheby’s gives c. 1930–38. Private collection.
