Himalayas. Golden clouds on a purple sky. 1940

Nicholas Roerich made this painting, Himalayas. Golden clouds on a purple sky, with thin paint strokes, layering color upon color. Imagine the way the brush must have felt moving across the surface, with the artist maybe stopping, maybe pivoting, to capture the light dancing across the mountain peaks. Those soft golden clouds look like they're floating on a purple sky. It feels so still, so silent, like a dream you might have after a long hike. Roerich painted so many scenes of the Himalayas throughout his life. You can tell he was trying to capture not just the look of the place, but the feeling, the atmosphere. It makes me think about how artists are always chasing after something intangible, trying to pin down a feeling or an idea with just color and form. We're all in conversation, trying to make sense of this world, one brushstroke at a time.