KWIATY 1944

Wladyslaw Strzeminski made "Kwiaty" - that's Polish for flowers - in 1944, probably in watercolor. Look at how he uses the dabs of color to conjure these blooms! I bet Wladyslaw stood outside to make this. I can almost see him there, quickly trying to capture what's in front of him. It feels so immediate, doesn't it? It’s like he’s saying, “I don’t need to be precise; I just want to give you the feeling of these flowers.” Notice how the flower shapes are created from small strokes of yellow, red, and green, next to vertical marks of blue and brown. I love that kind of shorthand. It’s about an essence, a shorthand for seeing. Like other painters, Wladyslaw is reminding us to pay attention to the world around us, to look and feel deeply. And isn't that what art is all about?