The Calanque at Saint Tropez 1906

Paul Signac made this watercolor and pencil drawing, called "The Calanque at Saint Tropez," using a mix of loose washes and tight outlines. It’s all about the process, you can see the bones of the drawing, the underpainting, it's honest. I love the way he lays down these juicy pools of color, letting them bleed into each other, especially in the lower third with the water. Then there's this decisive black line, a kind of border, that corrals all that watery chaos. Look at the upper right, the way the blues and greens and oranges pile up, like a garden exploding. And then these firm, dark lines, it's a push and pull, like he's trying to capture something fleeting but also make it hold still. It feels like he’s in conversation with someone like Cezanne, both trying to capture the light and weight of the landscape, but Signac is looser, more playful. The whole thing feels like a question mark, and that's what makes it so alive.