Fillette assise 1925

María Blanchard made this painting, Fillette assise, with oil paint, and the colours are giving me a feeling! Especially the way she’s mixing those rosy pinks with a deep blue, it’s a colour clash that really makes you think about how colours affect us, and how we can affect them right back. When I get close, I can see Blanchard using thick, gloopy paint, especially around the girl’s face and hands. It's almost like she’s sculpting the figure out of the canvas. There are hints of red on her knees that catch my eye, and make me wonder what’s going on in the scene. The texture is rough and uneven, which makes the painting feel alive, like it’s still in process. Blanchard reminds me of Paula Modersohn-Becker, another painter who was interested in the inner lives of women. Both painters manage to capture a certain vulnerability in their work, making you question what it means to look and be looked at. Art doesn’t have to give you all the answers, does it? It’s more about asking the right questions.