Deer in the monastery garden 1912

Franz Marc made this painting, *Deer in the Monastery Garden,* with oil on canvas. Look at all the greens, reds, and yellows, chopped into geometric shapes that somehow make a landscape. I can imagine Marc, in front of his easel, trying to organize these shards of color and form, pushing and pulling, until the scene comes into being. I wonder what he was thinking, what he was trying to capture with this deer in the garden? The forms feel both natural and constructed. See how the deer’s head is resting, as though he is sleeping? I can almost feel the texture of the paint, the way he built up the layers to create depth and movement, and yet it feels still. It reminds me of other painters grappling with similar questions about form and representation, like Cézanne or Picasso. Artists are constantly talking to one another, across time, through their work, and this feels like a little piece of that conversation. Ultimately, painting is about embracing uncertainty, letting the unexpected emerge, and allowing for multiple interpretations.