A dream 1932

Picasso made this painting, *A Dream*, with oil on canvas. I like to imagine Picasso in his studio, circling the canvas, brush in hand. The pose of the figure is interesting because it's both voluptuous and a little awkward. I can imagine him thinking hard about how to fit all the parts together on the canvas, how to make it feel alive. The dreamy pastel palette creates a quiet, intimate mood. A certain tension exists between the flatness of the picture and the figure's volume. Her body feels like a landscape with its rounded forms. I am curious about the painting process, where one color meets another; it’s all very intuitive, like jazz or poetry. Maybe Picasso was listening to music while he painted, or thinking about another artist he admired. The surface is alive with feeling, like he's captured something fleeting and essential about the human condition. Painting is like a conversation between artists across time. Each work adds to the ongoing story of what it means to be human.