Thinking 1918

Editor: So, this is "Thinking" by Nicholas Roerich, painted in 1918. It looks like it's done with oil paint, maybe even some oil pastels? I'm struck by the sort of… dreamlike quality. It’s very blue, and the shapes are almost abstract. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The dominant blue definitely sets a contemplative mood. Beyond the color itself, consider Roerich's interest in symbolism and theosophy. This ‘thinking’ may refer less to rational thought and more to a deeper, intuitive knowing. Note the figure formed in the clouds. What does that suggest to you? Editor: It does look like a figure… kind of elongated and distorted. It reminds me a little of Munch's "The Scream," like an inner torment externalized into the landscape. Curator: Exactly. It evokes the idea that inner states can manifest symbolically in the outer world. And this during a period of immense global turmoil; the First World War, revolutions… Is that symbolic figure gesturing, perhaps questioning, in its ‘thinking’? Consider that clouds, water, mountains, all were frequently employed by Roerich to depict spiritual forces. Editor: So, the whole landscape could be a representation of an inner state, a reflection of collective anxiety during wartime? Curator: Precisely. The landscape then isn't just scenery, it becomes a visual metaphor, a mirror reflecting back the emotional and psychological climate of the time and potentially enduring questions of the human condition. Editor: That’s fascinating, it shifts the whole interpretation of the piece! Curator: It’s a prime example of how symbols embedded within landscapes can hold deeper cultural memory and speak across generations.