Paris Under Occupation, the Line for Milk 1942

Edgar Chahine made this painting, "Paris Under Occupation, the Line for Milk," using oil paint on what appears to be board. Chahine has laid the paint on with thick strokes, creating an almost palpable sense of the crowd's density and the weight of their shared experience. Notice how the impasto technique gives the figures a sculptural quality, as though they are emerging from the very fabric of the city itself. The use of oil paint, a traditional medium, underscores the timelessness of human suffering, even amidst the specific historical context of wartime Paris. This work really exemplifies how an artist can take conventional materials and methods and imbue them with profound social commentary, proving that the how of making is just as important as the what. It challenges us to consider how the labor of artmaking can mirror the struggles of everyday life.