Childhood n.º 1

What does the theory claim? That this piece inaugurates the series of monumental canvases on the stages of human life known as The Ten Largest, where a garland of white flowers, a symbol of supreme purity, floats against a blue background, which Hilma associates with the spiritual world.

And what have we done in practice? We focused on the flowers, altering their chromatic nature by replacing the white with a deep, passionate blood red, where each petal converges on a golden center with fine veins that emulate the actual pistil. A deliberate decision to embrace the most unsettling symbol of the collection and thus turn it into an explosion of vitality.

You will find it in The Ten Largest, No. 1, Childhood, Group IV, 1907.