The Snail 1953

Henri Matisse made The Snail at the end of his life by cutting shapes from paper he’d painted with gouache. It's about as big as I am, maybe bigger! Look at how he balances those bright, solid colors. It’s like he’s arranging pure sensation. I mean, the color isn’t trying to describe anything, it just IS. The edges of those shapes feel really decisive. It’s just "snip," "snip," and then he pins them to the canvas. There's a real joy in that directness. And that brings me back to thinking about how artists talk to each other. You know, I see echoes of Miro in there, that playful approach to form, but with a Matisse twist. It reminds me that art is always a conversation. It's never really done.