Still Life with Peonies in a Vase 1912

Pyotr Konchalovsky made this painting of peonies in a vase with oil paint, and boy, can you tell! Just look at that bright orange and yellow backdrop, the deep blues of the table covering, and then the deep purples and greens of the flowers themselves. I can only imagine what it was like to stand in Konchalovsky’s shoes, brush in hand, trying to get the colour just right. What kind of brushstrokes would he have used, what kind of pressure did he apply to the canvas? Did he stand back to admire the effect? See how he loaded up the brush and slashed at the canvas? The impasto surface makes me want to reach out and touch it! Painting, after all, is a very physical process. The energy in those marks feels like he’s throwing something down, not just describing it. It reminds me of some of my own painting techniques, and of course, the work of so many others who attempt to capture the world in their own, subjective way. We are all in an ongoing conversation with the work of other painters, isn’t it just the best? Painting embraces ambiguity, which leaves the door open for infinite interpretations.