Still Life with Parrots 1902

This "Still Life with Parrots" was cooked up by Paul Gauguin, probably with oil paint, sometime around 1902. Look at how Gauguin lays down these brushstrokes! They're so present, they don’t try to hide their labor, each one a testament to the decisions he made. Notice how the colors aren't quite blended, how they vibrate against each other, setting up a kind of electric hum. The paint has texture, not super thick but it gives the image depth. I particularly like the folded white cloth. Its folds make a nice contrast to the smooth curves of the water gourd and the birds' bodies. In a way, it's as if Gauguin is setting up a kind of argument between flatness and depth, presence and absence. It reminds me of Matisse, actually, particularly the way he’d use flattened space to create a sense of decorative wonder.