Ibaye 1950

Wifredo Lam made ‘Ibaye’, with what looks like charcoal and gouache, maybe, creating a ghostly scene. There's this figure, right? Perched atop what could be a throne or some kind of altar. The blacks and grays are so intense, almost vibrating off the paper. I can imagine Lam, charcoal in hand, circling and jabbing at the page, trying to conjure up these spectral forms. The textures are everything here, that powdery residue of charcoal clinging to the surface, giving it this ethereal quality. It makes me wonder what was going through Lam's head at this time. Was he wrestling with his identity, his heritage? I see echoes of Picasso, maybe a touch of Matisse, but also something entirely Lam's own, something deeply personal. It’s like he's tapping into some primal energy. And ultimately, that's what painting is all about, isn't it? A constant conversation across time, artists speaking to each other through their work, inspiring, challenging, pushing the boundaries of what painting can be.