The Red House 1925

Auguste Herbin built this stacked construction with flat planes of colour, probably sometime in the first half of the twentieth century. The red shouts out, but the overall effect is softened by the organic swirls of the tree, the water and the clouds behind. I wonder if Herbin built this painting bit by bit, like the house it depicts? It’s a funny game we painters play, trying to coax what we see onto the canvas. I imagine Herbin, in his studio, moving his brush slowly, trying to find the right weight and tone for each plane of colour. The white windows feel hopeful and bring forward the art deco aesthetic. Each window is a statement of looking and seeing. There’s something really satisfying about the simplified forms and how Herbin flattens space. I admire the way his work speaks to the ongoing conversation between painters over the years. I feel like I’m always learning from artists like Herbin, understanding how to make something new and strange from the everyday.