Brown's still lifes offer insight into the evolution of her interest in domestic imagery – from objects for formal study to meaningful subjects. In Untitled (ca. 1960), Brown applied her signature thick paint to items in her kitchen: a banana, a pumpkin, and a decorative jar. She experimented with texture, light, color, and scale, as well as a compositional model more structured than her abstract paintings. At that time, she felt pressure to continue to paint in the Bay Area Figurative style for which she had been acclaimed, despite feeling stifled and no longer inspired by this avenue. It was to a seemingly mundane group of still-life objects – a bowl and some eggs and cucumbers – that she turned in 1965 when she began to make the significant transition away from her signature impasto. By the 1970s, her painting style was flatter and domestic objects had become channels for personal expression. She moved away from most traditional still-life elements and selected objects that were repositories for her memories and feelings. In The Anniversary – Accessories – Scarf with Evening Purse, Orchid Corsage and Glove (1971), a floral scarf, a white glove, a purse, and a blooming corsage are all keepsakes from a memorable anniversary. The backgrounds of these later still lifes are often very active as Brown combined contrasting patterns and mismatched colors. Independent curator Michael Duncan proposed in an article in Art in America that Brown's work should be considered within the context of the Pattern and Decoration movement.11 Her still lifes especially demonstrate her interest in the decorative arts, notably textiles, wallpaper, and, later, ancient art.
