Nature morte. Poissons et poêle 1936

Here's a still life painting of fish and a pan by Pablo Picasso. Look at the almost casual arrangement of the fishes and the pan. The brushstrokes are pretty visible, aren't they? Sort of thick and juicy. I bet Picasso was thinking about how to make something that looks so everyday feel so alive on the canvas. That black pan looming over the little fishes really gets me. I wonder if Picasso wanted to capture the moment right before they became supper? It’s like he’s thinking about life and death, but in a kitchen, you know? Picasso's probably in his studio, smelling the oil paints, maybe thinking of Matisse, or Braque, his pal. It's all connected, this painting thing—a big conversation across time. It makes you think about what it means to make something, to transform what you see and feel into a painting. What can you transform today?