Age of Love 1938

Alphonse Mucha mixed oil and tempera to make "Age of Love," and just look at the energy that exudes from the surface! The dominant green palette, punctuated with touches of brown, creates a dream-like space, where the artist seems to be asking: what is love? What does it mean to celebrate it? He must have stood back, squinting, and layering the colours, wiping away some areas while building up others. I imagine Mucha wanted to express a kind of atmosphere more than a reality. Notice the embracing figures in the lower-left corner, set against the soft edges of the circle where the crowd has gathered. It reminds me of Symbolist painters like Puvis de Chavannes, who similarly evoked feeling through allegory. Painters are always in conversation with each other, trying to find new ways to see and feel. And maybe that’s what love is all about: finding new ways of seeing.