Palm Trees At Martigues (Homage To Gauguin) 1910

Raoul Dufy’s ‘Palm Trees at Martigues (Homage to Gauguin)’ is a riot of greens, reds, and earthy yellows, all pulled into being with short, choppy strokes of paint. Looking at it, I imagine Dufy, brush in hand, wrestling with the canvas, trying to capture the light, the feeling, the sheer exuberance of those palm trees. Was he thinking of Gauguin’s Tahiti, I wonder, dreaming of escape while grounded in Martigues? There’s a push-and-pull here, a tension between observation and invention. See how the leaves aren’t just green but layered with blues and browns? The surface is alive, vibrating with energy. And that one daring red palm—it’s like a shout, a burst of emotion. I like that the painting doesn't explain itself, it presents itself, as a possibility. Artists are always in conversation, borrowing, stealing, paying homage. Dufy tips his hat to Gauguin, but he also stakes his own claim, saying, "I was here, I saw this, and this is how it felt to me." It's painting as a record of an experience and Dufy passes it on to us.