La Villa Bleue 1918

Henri Matisse made this painting, La Villa Bleue, with oil paints and a brushy, broken touch. The way he puts down the paint, it’s all about the process, the feeling of the moment. Check out how Matisse handles the paint itself, thick in some spots, thin in others, almost like he’s sculpting with color. He's laid down strokes of green, building up the landscape, and then dotted the roof with these quick dashes of orange. It’s like he’s capturing not just what he sees, but how it feels to be there, looking at it. And that blue dome – it's not just a color, it’s a little burst of energy. Matisse reminds me a bit of Cézanne, both playing with how we see, both turning the world into these delicious, wobbly paintings. Art isn’t about answers, it’s about asking questions and keeping the conversation going.