Odalisque 1972

Corneille's Odalisque is a party of color and line! Look at the blue, yellow, orange, and red—vibrant and alive! I imagine Corneille, brush in hand, circling, smearing, and building up this image. See how he lays down color, then lets a black line define the form? What a tightrope walk. It's like he's saying, "I want to see if I can make this image before it falls apart!" Painting is about embracing the moment, the gesture. Those stripes, the flowered cloth—they’re not just decoration. They're a way of seeing, of celebrating the joy of painting itself. I am so moved by the artist and how they communicate feeling. It makes me reflect on the long history of painters talking to each other across time. That's what makes art so alive.