Find 1956

This painting is by Remedios Varo, and it’s like stepping into a dream. Look at the colours, the deep oranges and browns, and the way the light flickers. I bet she built it up layer by layer, inventing as she went along, trying things out, not knowing exactly what she was doing until, boom, it was there. I imagine Varo in her studio, totally absorbed, mixing colours, making tiny adjustments. What was she thinking as she painted this curious boat-like structure with its strange passengers floating down a narrow waterway? Are they searching for something or running away? The trees are like ghostly figures lining the banks, a kind of protective barrier against who knows what? Each detail is so precise, yet the overall effect is utterly mysterious. I see echoes of other artists here, Bosch and maybe Ernst, but Varo's world is all her own. It's a reminder that artists build on each other’s ideas, but ultimately, each one finds their own weird and wonderful path.