Dimensions: 106 x 198 cm
Copyright: Public domain
Niko Pirosmani, likely made "The feast with barrel organist Datiko Zemeli" with oil paint on oilcloth, but when? We're not quite sure! Look at those figures, so black they're almost silhouetted, each mark so decisive. You get a sense Pirosmani knew exactly what he wanted to do. He isn't messing around. The black of the figures is so stark, but when you zoom in close, you see all the texture and variation. Like, look at the guy on the left with his barrel organ. The way he leans into that box, it's like the music is about to spill out of it and onto the table. I love the casual way Pirosmani flicks the paint, like he's trying to catch a feeling more than a likeness. Pirosmani was a self-taught artist, a Georgian painter who reminds me a bit of Rousseau, both in his naivety and his intense originality. With Pirosmani, there's this balance between simplicity and depth, a feeling that what you see is only the beginning. Art is like that, always opening into something else.
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