Winston Churchill 1970

Arroyo painted "Winston Churchill" with flat shapes and colors, like he was building a scene out of cut paper. I love how the artist has chosen to depict the artist at work here. The man with the cigar is in his zone, maybe feeling a little stuck, staring at that yellow canvas like it's a big question mark. I get it. We've all been there, right? That moment when you're trying to make something out of nothing. Check out how Arroyo uses color here: that strange green, that almost black, that bright, hopeful yellow. They're not quite harmonious, but they're not fighting either. It's like Arroyo is saying, "Life is messy and full of contradictions." And that’s where the juice is. You can see echoes of Hockney in the boldness, maybe a nod to Léger in the simplified forms. Artists are always chatting to each other across time, stealing ideas, and making them their own.