Apple and cherry 1917

Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin made this painting of an apple and cherry with oil on canvas. Look at how the brushstrokes of blue build the drapery of the cloth. I wonder how long he spent on it. Did it come together in a day? Or did he keep coming back to it? When you’re painting, you’re thinking about so many things at once. The object in front of you, the history of painting, your own feelings. Petrov-Vodkin would have been looking at Cezanne, at Russian icon painting. And then he looks at an apple! It's not just an apple; it's an idea of an apple. I love how the redness of the fruit is offset by the muted tones of the background, and how he’s created a beautiful harmony between the two. It’s like he is asking, “How do I see this, and how do I make you see it?” Painters are always in conversation with each other, across time. Each artwork adds another layer to the ongoing exploration of what it means to represent the world through paint. And isn't it interesting how different ways of painting offer different ways of seeing? It leaves the door open for endless possibilities.