Conversation with a hunter 1925

Tadeusz Makowski made this oil painting, Conversation with a Hunter, with warm earthy colors that make it feel like a storybook scene. The way the paint is laid down so flatly, and the outlines, remind me of folk art, or maybe even a child’s drawing. Look at the dog: it's all these furry, expressive brushstrokes. I bet Makowski really enjoyed painting that! It’s like the dog is listening intently, tilting its head as if understanding every word. The hands of both men feel really animated too, as though the conversation is a kind of dance. The artist has a sense of the absurd and a kind of naivety, and he’s letting us into a world that’s both charming and strange. Makowski’s paintings have this melancholic, dreamlike quality that you also see in the work of Marc Chagall, a sense of nostalgia and longing for a simpler time. But with Makowski, there’s always this playful, slightly off-kilter perspective that keeps you guessing.