The great table 1965

René Magritte’s “The Great Table” is awash with blue, a dreamlike scene painted with the precision that’s his trademark. It’s like he's inviting us into a puzzle, and the brushstrokes are part of the riddle. Look closely at the surface. The paint is smooth, almost concealing the hand of the artist. It's quite different from the rough and expressive brushwork of someone like Van Gogh. This smooth finish contributes to the painting's enigmatic and surreal quality. The way the light hits the apples and the bowl, there’s a play of shadows, but it’s all very contained. Notice that one apple that's rolled off the table? It's as though the painting is about to tip, like the world is about to reveal some hidden layer. Magritte's work reminds me a bit of de Chirico, who created strange, unsettling spaces. But Magritte adds this layer of domesticity, like a wolf in sheep's clothing. His work really embraces ambiguity, doesn't it?