Moulin Huet Bay, Guernsey 

'Moulin Huet Bay, Guernsey' is a Renoir painted, presumably in oil paint, at an unknown date. I love how Renoir builds up these layers of brushstrokes, like he’s knitting the scene together with color. The palette is soft, almost pastel – pinks, blues, and greens swirling together. It’s like he’s not just painting what he sees, but how it feels to be there, the process of painting as an experience. Look at that big rock on the right. The paint is dabbed on in thick, textured strokes, with blues and yellows. It’s so physical. You can almost feel the weight and solidity of the rock, but it is also kind of a mirage. That rock is the whole painting in miniature. It reminds me a bit of Cezanne, who was also trying to get at something solid and lasting through his own process of painting. Painting is about finding ways of seeing, ways of thinking. It’s always a conversation between artists across time. It’s never about fixed meanings, but about keeping the conversation going.