Fruites d´estiu 2004

This is Albert Rafols-Casamada's "Fruites d’estiu," made with paint, though when exactly is anyone's guess. I love the loose, playful energy of this painting. It feels like Rafols-Casamada was just messing around, trying things out. I can imagine him, brush in hand, thinking, "What if I put a bright orange ground down first, then scratch some blue lines on top? And what if those lines become a bowl and some fruit? Or maybe they just stay lines." There’s a real sense of freedom in the way he uses color and form. The paint is thin, almost watery, which gives the whole thing a light, airy feel. The little cluster of circles in the middle—are they grapes, maybe? They remind me of Miro, who was also very good at evoking a sense of childlike wonder. It's like Rafols-Casamada is in conversation with other artists and their forms, across time, inspiring one another's creativity. I feel like that freedom is what paintings are about: an invitation to play, to think, to feel, to imagine what might be.