No doubt, Monet was brilliant.
The soft combinations of colors, the diffuse borders, the subject matter itself leave one with a peace that is practically unmatched.
Van Gogh is now and will always be my favorite.
It makes one wonder about motives. Monet’s works do not make me wonder about past or future or circumstances. But I saw a copy of a simple still life by Van Gogh that showed shoes in a closet and it brought to my imagination ten thousand questions about who wore the shoes, where they were worn, what path they trod...
Picasso had two important qualities. First, he was technically, a great painter.
Secondly, he was crazy.
His artistry takes you to a place where you almost immediately forget the picture and start to reflect (internally reflect) on the meaning.
That’s not always an easy thing to do, even writers have a hard time sometimes of using narrative and making the reader wonder how that reflects them.
I am getting to be an older man now, spent most of my life with computers.
But if I could live my life again, it would be with watercolors at hand.
Thank you for a fascinating post. I savored every syllable. I am a big Van Gogh fan, but my artist friend is a massive one. I wish I could remember every word he said about Van Gogh. He mentioned something about a particular self portrait Van Gogh painted 3 times, iirc, and how two of them were done via [the artist looking at himself in a] mirror and the third wasn’t. Don’t quote me; I’m already making a mental note to ask my friend about it the next time we speak.
Anyway, your observation is so intriguing. I hadn’t thought about it, but it’s true. Monet’s paintings are just there, in all their breathtaking, genius glory. Van Gogh ignites the imagination w questions about the backstory of [at least some of] of his work. That is a gift, and as you aptly said, not many have it.