Swordsmen 1931

Tadeusz Makowski, sometime in the early 20th century, made this oil on canvas painting, and it’s a playful yet eerie scene, isn't it? Imagine Makowski, brush in hand, layering thin washes of color to build up these strange figures. Two fencers stand poised, their faces obscured by mask-like grids, which are like a visual puzzle. And then there's that smiling sun hovering above, next to a bizarre box with a beak hanging on the door, like some kind of fever dream. I wonder what he was thinking as he dabbed at the canvas, creating these odd little characters. Did he see them as performers in a bizarre play, or perhaps reflections of the world seen through a child’s eyes? The paint itself is thinly applied, creating a slightly rough surface. This gives the painting a ghostly quality, as if these figures are emerging from the very material of the canvas. Painters, like Makowski, are in constant dialogue with one another across time, each brushstroke an echo of those who came before. And each painting opens up multiple ways of seeing and experiencing.