Tibet. Himalayas. 1933

Nicholas Roerich made this painting of the Himalayas in Tibet using tempera, though the exact date is unknown. The blues in this piece, wow, they just sing, right? It’s like he’s got a whole symphony of cerulean and sapphire swirling around. And then there's the texture, not too thick, not too thin, but just right, you know? It's like Roerich is playing with the surface, layering these colors to create a dreamscape that's both there and not there. Look at the mountain on the right. See how the color shifts, creating a kind of luminous glow? It’s like he’s not just painting a mountain, but the very idea of a mountain, a symbol of something greater. Roerich reminds me of Hilma af Klint in a way; both were interested in the spiritual. They were both painting something beyond what the eye can see. It's art as a question, an exploration, a journey, rather than an answer.