Five bathers 1920

Pablo Picasso made "Five Bathers" sometime in his life, and it measures about 72.5 x 92.5 cm. The painting's got this sun-baked palette, all sandy yellows and fleshy pinks, like a day at the beach turned slightly surreal. What strikes me is the way Picasso builds these figures with simple, almost crude marks. They're monumental, yet rendered with this offhand quality, as if he's sketching in the sand with his toes. Check out the reclining figure at the front. The heavy outline and earthy tones make her feel so grounded, like a part of the landscape itself. There's a real tension between the flatness of the picture plane and the volume of the figures. It's like he's wrestling with representation, pushing and pulling at the edges of what a body can be. It reminds me of the raw energy you find in some of Philip Guston’s later works. Both artists share this fearlessness, this willingness to embrace awkwardness in the pursuit of something deeply felt and true.