Inner courtyard of house in St. Germain 1914

August Macke made this little watercolor, *Inner courtyard of house in St. Germain*, using quick strokes of the brush and some lovely, transparent color. I like to think about how Macke chose to apply the paint, in thin washes of luminous yellow, and how the buildings and trees emerged with each stroke. Painting is a funny thing, isn't it? I can imagine Macke setting up his easel, squinting at the light as he tries to work out how to translate what he sees. The process is all about intuition. I’m sure he didn’t plan it all out ahead of time. Look at that ziggy-zaggy, horizontal line suggesting the roof – it’s like he’s thinking out loud, right there on the paper! Painters, you know, we’re always in conversation with each other, across time. I look at this and I think of Paul Klee, or even Matisse - the way they simplify form and use color to create feeling. It's all one big, ongoing party of ideas. Macke is inviting us in, brushstroke by brushstroke.