Flowers on the table 1907

Here we have a painting by Picasso of flowers on a table, full of bold brushstrokes and vibrant colour. You can almost feel the energy he brought to the canvas. The colours are so striking and intense, with yellows and blues that sort of vibrate together. I can imagine Picasso standing before the canvas, brush in hand, intensely focused. There’s a dynamism in the way he’s applied the paint, with strong angular lines and sharp edges everywhere. I wonder what he was thinking about as he worked, maybe the play of light on the flowers, or the sheer pleasure of putting paint to canvas? You can see how he reduces the flowers and vase to geometric forms, playing with abstraction and representation at the same time. It makes me think about the way Cezanne rendered still life, and how Picasso takes that and pushes it even further. It's like he's having a conversation with the past, but also forging his own path. That’s what painting's about – a constant exchange, where artists inspire and challenge each other across time.