Crystal Ball 1902

John William Waterhouse made 'Crystal Ball' with oil on canvas, and I can only imagine what it might have been like to conjure this scene! Waterhouse’s technique looks smooth as silk—the paint is thinly applied and the colours are blended with care. The figure is rendered in sumptuous red and is tightly focused, while everything else dissolves into atmosphere and the background is more loosely articulated. I imagine he wanted to explore the contrast between the solid and the ephemeral, between the real and the imagined. Look at her face, so lost in concentration. Is she seeing something we can't see? Maybe she's questioning her decisions, trying to foresee the consequences, and hoping for some clarity. That small gesture of her holding the crystal ball is enough to spark our imaginations and create a sense of wonder. That’s the thing about painting: each artist takes cues from the last and contributes something new to the conversation!