The Fencers 2016

Alaa Awad made "The Fencers" with paint, probably oil or acrylic, and a real sense of rhythm. Look at the way those vertical lines of the horses' legs create a beat, like a visual drumline. The paint handling here is so upfront, so honest. It's not trying to hide anything. You can see the strokes, the drips, the way the colors blend and bleed into each other. It feels like Awad is inviting us into the process, showing us how the painting came to be. Take those blue lines defining the horse on the right - they're so simple, almost childlike, but they give the whole figure its shape and energy. It reminds me a bit of early Philip Guston, that same willingness to embrace awkwardness and let the painting be what it wants to be, not what it's supposed to be. It’s about the journey, not the destination.