Diváci 1912

Emil Filla made this painting, Diváci, with what looks like oil on canvas, though who knows when exactly. I love how the canvas here is a jumble of geometric shapes in neutral colours – creams, browns, and beiges that create fractured faces, like a cubist collage with a muted palette. The paint application looks quite flat, almost dry, which gives it a strange, ethereal quality. There are no clues about the artist's process, and I don't know if I could guess what brushes or tools they used. Take a look at the way Filla has rendered the eye, and the suggestion of a pipe between the two central heads; these give the piece a strange intensity that resonates beyond its formal qualities. It makes me think of Braque, who was playing with similar deconstructed forms and limited palettes around the same time – art is always an ongoing conversation, isn't it? I love the idea that different artists and eras influence each other in unexpected ways.