L'orage sur Bréhât 1956

Charles Lapicque made 'L'orage sur Bréhât', an oil painting, and it's like he's wrestling with color itself. You can see it's an active process, not just a pretty picture, right? It's like he’s thrown every color on the canvas, but there's a method to his madness. Look how he's used the pinks and purples in the clouds against the greens and blues of the land and sea. The paint isn’t trying to hide, it’s a little translucent in places, and the brushstrokes are clearly visible, like a map of his own movements and decisions. See that stroke of bright orange near the center? It's a tiny burst of energy that brings the whole thing alive! Lapicque reminds me of the Fauves like Matisse, with their love of pure color and disregard for naturalistic representation. Art’s not about copying the world, but making a new one, a conversation between the artist, the materials, and us.