Woman with a Fan (Lunia Czechowska) 1919

This is Amedeo Modigliani's "Woman with a Fan (Lunia Czechowska)," made with oil on canvas. Look at those fiery reds and yellows, that elongated neck, the almond eyes peering off to the side. I can imagine Modigliani in his studio, charcoal in hand, sketching, erasing, starting over, trying to get that curve of the neck just right. You can see Modigliani’s love of form. I feel like he's simplifying the world down to its basic shapes, almost like he's building with blocks of color. The paint looks thin, almost watery in places, like he's letting the canvas breathe. I can see the ghost of past marks beneath the surface. It’s about seeing and feeling. It's like he's inviting us into his own private world, full of mystery and emotion. Painters are always in conversation with each other, across time. Modigliani, Picasso, Cezanne—they were all looking at each other, pushing each other to see the world in new ways. We all stand on the shoulders of those who came before, learning from their struggles and their triumphs.