Woman and Birds 1968

Joan Miró probably used oil paint or maybe gouache, to make Woman and Birds, but when, where, or even why, who knows? Look at that thick black line snaking around the canvas—it’s the star of the show! I bet Miró was trying to push painting to its limits here, maybe asking himself, ‘How can I make something new with these old materials?’ I bet he was thinking about how to make something new and push the boundaries of painting, and he did just that. He made a new language of shapes and forms that feels both strange and familiar. Like a lot of other artists, I think Miro was also trying to break free from the traditional ideas about art, and just letting his imagination run wild. The way he used the colors, so bright and bold, it's like he was inventing his own world right on the canvas. Painting’s like a conversation across time, each artist chipping in their two cents.