Georgian Woman with Tambourine 1906

This is Niko Pirosmani’s ‘Georgian Woman with Tambourine'. I can almost see him painting this, maybe in a single shot, a concentrated burst of energy. The black paint must have been laid on so thick, making the colours glow! That blue background is quite something, isn't it? It’s like a deep, dreamy space behind her. What I love about Pirosmani is his directness. It’s right there, no messing about. Those bold red stripes around her waist—pow! So striking against the dark dress, which, by the way, is just…black. But not just black, it's an intense black, a void from which she emerges. I bet he wasn't thinking about perspective or realism when he painted this. The painting is so flat, so frontal, so in your face—it almost feels like he’s challenging us. I love the way he makes the surface sing, kind of like Marsden Hartley. And of course, it makes you realize how much painting is about conversation, a big, rowdy, ongoing argument where everyone gets a say.