Figure through flowers 1935

Grace Cossington Smith made this painting, "Figure through flowers," sometime in her career, using what looks like confident strokes of oil paint on canvas. The colors are muted yet hopeful, like spring seen through a window. I can imagine Grace standing before the canvas, squinting at the model and the riot of flowers, trying to capture their essence with these little tiles of color. The paint is applied so directly, almost like building blocks. Look at the way she renders the face—a mosaic of soft browns, pinks, and grays that somehow coalesce into a recognizable portrait. It reminds me of some early Cézannes, or maybe even a touch of those Fauvist painters, Matisse and Derain, with their bold color choices. There's a real intimacy here, a sense of quiet observation and an invitation to slow down and really see. I like how she invites us to consider the painting process itself as a means of exploring perception, feeling, and memory. It all contributes to the ongoing conversation about the possibilities of paint.