Kůň Drásaný Lvem 1938

Emil Filla made 'Kůň Drásaný Lvem' with paint, and a whole lotta feeling. I can see him layering those strokes, figuring it out as he goes, wrestling with the image like that lion wrestles the horse! It’s a cubist kind of struggle, with those angular shapes and fractured forms. I mean, look at the horse's mouth, that’s a proper scream! There’s a raw energy in the brushwork and the muddy color, and the way the figures are composed, it is a kind of dance between control and chaos. I imagine him channeling Picasso, maybe some of the German Expressionists too, but really making it his own. You can feel the tension, right? The fight between the lion and the horse is like a stand-in for the artist’s internal battles. Painting is a conversation across time, a way of working through the world. You know, like when I’m in the studio, I’m not just putting paint on canvas, I’m trying to figure stuff out, one layer at a time.