L’Age du plaisir 1946

This is Magritte’s, *L’Age du plaisir*. You can feel him searching for something in the process of painting it. The colours are soft, like a memory, and the brushstrokes are gentle, almost hesitant. It’s like he’s trying to capture a fleeting feeling rather than a concrete image. I imagine him standing in front of the canvas, mixing those pastel hues, wondering how to make pleasure visible. Maybe he started with the landscape, that dreamy field of flowers, and the woman emerged from there, or maybe it was the other way around? I wonder if the woman’s face is based on someone he knew or loved. The pale stone reminds me of a classical sculpture. It's almost as though he has painted her in the likeness of a statue. Magritte’s always playing with what’s real and what’s not, inviting us to question our perceptions. He’s part of a long line of artists who use paint to explore the mysteries of existence. It's a conversation that continues today.