The Smoker 1913

'The Smoker' by Juan Gris, painted sometime in the early 20th century, is composed of planes of colour that push and pull in a game of spatial ambiguity. Imagine Gris piecing together this character, fragment by fragment, with planes of green, blue, and tan. It’s like he’s building a person out of geometric thoughts. I can imagine him stepping back, squinting, and deciding, 'Yes, this angle needs more green, a sharper edge.' Look at the way the light glances off those planes, how each colour feels both solid and transparent, creating a smoky atmosphere. That little curl of smoke near the top? It’s like a signature, a flourish that ties the whole composition together. It reminds me of Picasso and Braque, who were also deconstructing form, but Gris brings a certain playfulness to it, a lightness of touch. The conversation between painters goes on and on. Each one takes a piece of the puzzle and fits it into their own world.