Night Room, 2000
$395.00
Editorial View
The Gallery's Perspective
A small, measured burst of energy gives this little landscape a quietly theatrical moment. Fanny Brennan reduces the scene to the essentials: a snow-dusted cone of a mountain set against a clear, gradient sky, with a soft plume of smoke rising from its summit. The image feels intimate because of its scale — the mountain is rendered with fine, deliberate strokes so that the snow and dark ridges read like tiny, tactile marks rather than sweeping panoramas. The pale turquoise sky provides calm contrast, making the upward curl of the smoke feel both gentle and insistent. There’s a subtle humor in the title and in the notion of a grand geological gesture made modest by the print’s compact format; it reads like a private, remembered view rather than a dramatic spectacle. As an object, its restraint and quiet personality make it the kind of image that lingers in the room and in the mind.
The Artwork
About Letting Off Steam, 1996
"Letting Off Steam" is a lithograph created by Fanny Brennan in 1996. From the edition of 300, the artwork is initialed 'FMB' lower right and annotated lower left. The artwork is framed in a contemporary silver and dark gray frame and has a framed size of 13 x 16.25". The artwork ships framed and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. Each of Brennan's prints is a compact world of real and imaginary elements, playful and ambiguous, though completely enjoyable. "My intention is to depart entirely from the the customary view of miniature painting," notes the artist. "I do not paint mementos. Rather, by placing familiar objects in unfamiliar settings, I try to produce an image that will be remembered for its own sake." This work is published by Chalk & Vermilion Fine Arts, an affiliate of Martin Lawrence Galleries, no prior ownership.
Collector Details
What to Know About This Piece
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About the Collection
Fanny Brennan (1921–2001) was a French-American surrealist artist renowned for her miniature paintings that transform everyday objects into imaginative compositions. Her work is characterized by meticulous detail and a whimsical approach, often featuring items like buttons, safety pins, and pearls in surreal settings. Brennan's art invites viewers into a mythical world, blending the normal with the magical. Her innovative approach to small-scale art has secured her place among notable 20th-century female artists, contributing significantly to contemporary surrealism.
Image Rights
Image copyright © 2026 by Fanny Brennan.
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Authenticity & Documentation
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Limited-edition artwork includes a Certificate of Authenticity when one is issued by the artist, publisher, studio, or authorized source. Open-edition pieces may not include a certificate; this does not affect their authenticity. The Collection Shop sources artwork through artists, publishers, authorized distributors, galleries, and other approved channels. Any additional documentation included with this specific piece will be noted above.
Fanny Brennan's innovative approach to painting is immediately clear in the small size of her work, which never exceeds a few inches square. These tiny pictures are filled with humor and, in meticulous detail, present playful images of a mythical world that exists only in her imagination.
As an American student in Paris, Fanny was an independent soul. "At the Atelier Art et Jeunesse," she says, they were always trying to get me to fill the entire page of drawing paper. I only wanted to make very, very small pictures." Defying the fashion of the day, she refused to wear a hat and probably spent too much time at the Cafe de Flore, where she taught Picasso to play Chinese Checkers and rubbed peanut shells into Giacometti's hair. She was asked to leave her all-girl boarding house after calling the ornery concierge a "cow."
Since then, Fanny has painted more than 300 images on small gessoed composition boards—each one usually taking one month to complete. A charter member of "Who's Who in American Art" her originals have been exhibited in galleries across the USA. She has also received awards from Time Inc., The Art Directors Club and the Museum of Modern Art. Each of these lithographs is made in the traditional manner with all color plates created by hand.
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