Cliff by the sea 1905

Mikalojus Konstantinas Ciurlionis gave us this painting, Cliff by the Sea, and I can really feel him working out the colours with his brush. The subtle shifts in tone make the scene feel like a living thing. Up close, you can almost feel the texture of the canvas, and the way the paint sits on top. It’s not about hiding the process; it’s about letting the materiality of the paint do its thing. Look at the way he layered the greens and browns on the cliff face, how each stroke seems to define the form, but also blend seamlessly into the whole. It’s like watching a dance between intention and accident, where each mark builds on the last. Ciurlionis reminds me a lot of Marsden Hartley who also sort of pulled landscapes apart, bit by bit, and let them breathe on the canvas. This piece has no fixed meaning, it’s up to us to find our own way.