Czóbel Béla Still Life 1930 1930

Béla Czóbel’s Still Life from 1930 is like a little poem, full of gentle marks and muted tones, mostly browns, reds, and greens. I imagine Czóbel circling the canvas, searching for a way in, maybe starting with the dark background and then letting the table emerge out of it. The paint looks thick and buttery, not quite hiding the gestures underneath. The red tablecloth is pretty great. It’s not really red, but more like a memory of red, or maybe a feeling of red. I’ve made paintings like that, where the colors aren’t what they seem, and the whole thing feels like a mirage. That little green book lying next to the flowers is like a friend quietly listening in on a conversation. It reminds me of other artists like Bonnard or Vuillard, who made paintings of their domestic lives. I see all of us painters as being in conversation with each other, even across time. Paintings are just one big, messy, beautiful conversation.