Mischief 1905

John William Godward painted "Mischief" with oils on canvas, and its smooth surface makes me wonder about the layers and decisions beneath. You know, that constant push and pull of wiping away and building up. I imagine him, in his studio, stepping back, squinting, and then moving in close again to tease out the details of her dress, how it bunches and folds with a life of its own. I get it. It's like you’re trying to capture not just what you see, but the feeling of the fabric, the weight of it. And that red, so intense against the cool marble. It's bold, almost defiant. I can't help but wonder if he was pushing against the expectations of his time, letting a bit of that "mischief" seep into his brushstrokes. Artists are always in conversation with each other, across time, borrowing, stealing, and riffing off what came before, trying to make something new.