Morning Still Life 1918

This is Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin’s *Morning Still Life*, its date unknown, a painting that feels like a quiet hum. The subdued palette and the way objects are carefully arranged makes me think about how much of artmaking is about seeing the world afresh, moment to moment. Look at the surface – it’s almost matte, and you can practically feel the wood grain beneath the paint. It's not trying to trick you into thinking it *is* the wood, or the objects, but it's happy to be a painting *of* them. See the flowers and how they just verge on dissolving into abstraction? It’s as if Petrov-Vodkin is more interested in the shapes and light than in botanical accuracy. Then there's the dog's inquisitive stare, it's a little surreal. Petrov-Vodkin reminds me a bit of Giorgio Morandi, another artist who found endless fascination in simple, everyday things. Both artists remind us that art is an ongoing conversation, a way of seeing, thinking, and experiencing the world in multiple ways.