The Orator 1912

Ferdinand Hodler made "The Orator" with oil on canvas, but we don't know exactly when. Look at how Hodler slapped down these colors – so bold and declarative! It's like he's not trying to blend or finesse, but just stating his case with each brushstroke. The texture is really interesting; you can see the weave of the canvas coming through, especially in the background. Hodler uses that flatness to push the figure forward. I'm drawn to how the figure's red suit dominates the composition. It’s a really saturated, almost theatrical red, with strokes of ochre and raw umber in the shadows. The way the light hits the orator’s raised arm, with those sharp, angular strokes, almost feels like he's trying to reach out of the painting. Hodler reminds me a bit of Courbet, maybe, in his directness and focus on the body. But where Courbet is all about realism, Hodler is pushing towards something more symbolic. It's a painting that doesn’t give you easy answers, and that’s what keeps it alive, right?