Un bon coin chez moi 1938

James Ensor made this painting, called "Un bon coin chez moi", which translates as "A nice corner in my house" using oil paint, in no specific year. Looking at this painting, the first thing that hits you is Ensor’s playful approach to color and mark-making. The way he layers pinks, blues, and oranges creates a vibrant surface that feels almost alive. You get a sense that he's not just representing a space, but really constructing his own way of seeing it. Up close, you can really feel the materiality of the paint. It's not trying to hide itself, you know? Ensor isn't interested in being slick or polished. Instead, he lets the paint do its thing. He applies the color with a dry brush, using short, broken strokes, allowing the white of the canvas to peek through. This gives the painting a sense of airiness, almost as if the objects are floating in space. Ensor’s work reminds me of other folks who were interested in finding new ways to paint the world like Vuillard or Bonnard who blurred the line between abstraction and figuration.