Houses in Trouville 1933

Raoul Dufy made "Houses in Trouville" with oil on canvas sometime in the early 20th century. I can imagine him, brush in hand, juggling the scene's vibrant hues—the bold reds of the buildings against that moody blue sky, the ochres of the crowd. There’s a kind of joy in how Dufy simplifies everything down to these essential strokes and planes. Look at how he uses line! It’s loose, playful, almost like he's sketching with paint. I bet that in his mind the buildings tilted a little more, the people blurred into an animated rhythm. The thickness of his brushstrokes gives the architecture weight, even as the loose composition pulls it all into a buoyant, dreamlike world. It reminds me a bit of Matisse's Fauvist landscapes, but with a distinctly French lightness. As painters, we're all in this conversation together, responding to what's come before, adding our own little twist. Dufy’s twist is this breezy, almost improvisational quality. His paintings invites you to see the world as a place of endless possibility.