The Black Bottle 1905

Samuel Peploe made ‘The Black Bottle’ with oil paint, at an unknown date. Looking at this painting, I can almost feel the artist there, arranging the objects just so, probably over and over again! See how the colors pop but are also muted, all held together by those blacks and grays? It’s a real balancing act. I imagine Peploe stepping back, squinting, and then making another bold stroke. That quick, decisive brushstroke defining the edge of the bowl – it’s like he’s daring the paint to become something. He's not trying to copy exactly what's in front of him. Instead, he finds a way to suggest the essence of the bowlness of the bowl. I see him in conversation with Manet and Cezanne. Painters always learn from each other, you know? Peploe's paintings feel like he's inviting us to see the world in a fresh way, to notice the beauty in the everyday, and maybe even pick up a brush ourselves. Isn’t painting great?