Andre Derain 1936

Balthus made this painting, "Andre Derain", now at MoMA, using oil on canvas. I imagine Balthus, standing before the canvas, mixing colors with a kind of detached curiosity. Look how he’s built up the figures slowly, carefully, allowing the painting to breathe, to exist in its own quiet space. The colors are muted, almost melancholic, with this amazing play of light and shadow that gives the whole scene a surreal, dreamlike quality. That flat, opaque surface is everything, isn't it? You can almost feel the stillness, the weight of the moment, the silence of the room. It’s as if the painting is holding its breath, inviting us to lean in and listen closely. When I look at the work of other painters, I feel like I am in an ongoing conversation, a meeting of minds across time. We artists inspire one another’s creativity.