The fair captive 1947

This oil on canvas was painted by René Magritte, but we don't know exactly when. It's called *The Fair Captive.* Imagine Magritte standing at the easel, brush in hand. There's a grey beach, the ocean, and looming grey clouds. But he’s not painting *that*. Instead, he's placed an easel and frame, like a mirror, which *shows* the scene behind it. It's like he's asking, what does it mean to capture a scene, to make it *fair*, to make it *captive*? To the right of the canvas, there's a tuba, but it's on fire! I think of Magritte playing with these ideas of *capture*, *containment*, and *release*. He loves to set up riddles for us to ponder. Is he playing with us, the captive audience? Is he burning the music? His paintings are these complex little theatre sets, you know?