Vase of Flowers before 1910

Maurice de Vlaminck made this Vase of Flowers with oil on canvas, and you can almost feel him wrestling with the painting. It's like watching a dance between control and letting go, right? The painting's built up with these assertive strokes of blues, greens, and touches of red that make the flowers pop – not in a polite way, but with a kind of raw energy. I bet Vlaminck was really in the zone, maybe even a bit frustrated, pushing the paint around to get it just right. You can feel the intensity of the moment, like a snapshot of his struggle and joy in capturing something so fleeting. It reminds me of other painters who weren't afraid to get messy, like the Fauves, who also used color like a weapon and a love letter at the same time. Ultimately, painting is a conversation, isn’t it? We try, we fail, we learn, and then we try again, inspired by those who came before us.