The model 1922

"The model" was made by René Magritte with oil on canvas. The colours are muted, almost clashing, with that odd fleshy figure on the left set against a strangely cubist scene behind. Up close, you can see the texture of the paint, how Magritte applies thin, even layers, carefully building up the image. There's no bravura or gestural flourish. Everything is measured, controlled. It's like he's trying to remove any trace of the artist's hand, and maybe that’s the key. Look at how the brown washes over the figure on the left, it is as if the whole painting is being lightly stained with coffee. Magritte's work reminds me a little of Giorgio de Chirico. Both artists create these uncanny, dreamlike spaces, but Magritte brings this wry sense of humor and absurdity. In the end, maybe it’s all about seeing things a little differently, questioning what we think we know, and finding the magic in the everyday.