First Book: Daphnis and Chloe Picking Flowers(Daphnis et Chloe rammassant des fleurs) Possibly 1937

Aristide Maillol made this serene image of Daphnis and Chloe gathering flowers with some kind of printmaking process. It’s so simple, just a few lines, but it captures something essential about these figures from Greek romance. The earth-tone ink on the off-white paper gives it a feeling of something unearthed, or maybe baked in the sun. Maillol lets the bodies speak through very minimal outlines. Look at the figure bending over— the curve of the back is so simple, it is just one line. You feel the strain and the effort, the weight of the body. The other figure, standing upright, almost seems to float, carrying the flowers like a burden. It is easy to see Maillol’s sculptures in this image. His figures are solid and grounded, but full of feeling. Like Matisse, he uses line in a way that is both descriptive and abstract, bringing us right into the heart of the image. It reminds me that art is just an ongoing conversation about seeing and feeling.