Jesus and the Samaritan woman. Eglise Saint-Sulpice de Fougères (detail) 1919

This detail of Ludovic Alleaume's stained glass in the Saint-Sulpice church in Fougères, France, depicts the Samaritan woman and Jesus, though here we see only her, gazing upwards. Imagine Alleaume, in his studio, cutting and piecing together these colored fragments of glass. It’s a beautiful face, isn’t it? So full of yearning. How did he manage to capture that sense of longing with just a few lines of paint? Her pale skin is contrasted with the colors surrounding her: reds, greens, and blues. I feel like Alleaume is in conversation with the great masters of the Renaissance, while forging his own path. It makes me think about the materiality of painting, of color and light. And about how artists are in constant conversation across time, inspiring each other. Painting lets us embrace ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations.