Thoughts and Reflections on Painting

work by Braque and Reverdy

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July 14, 2026

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"Thoughts and Reflections on Painting" is a collection of aphorisms by Georges Braque, compiled and published by his friend, the poet Pierre Reverdy. These reflections, scribbled during Braque's convalescence after being wounded in World War I, offer insight into the artistic philosophy behind Cubism.12

Braque, a pioneer of Cubism alongside Pablo Picasso, viewed painting not as a mere reproduction of reality, but as the creation of a "pictorial fact". His writings emphasize the importance of new means and subjects, and the idea that the senses can deform while the mind forms. Braque's work, characterized by robust construction and serene, meditative qualities, aimed to constitute a pictorial fact rather than reconstitute an anecdotal one.13

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Georges Braque
Cubism
…the review Nord–Sud as “Thoughts and Reflections on Painting.” Even a brief sampling can suggest the quality, at once poetic and rational, of Braque’s mind and the sort of thinking that lay behind Cubism:
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…the review Nord–Sud as “Thoughts and Reflections on Painting.” Even a brief sampling can suggest the quality, at once poetic and rational, of Braque’s mind and the sort of thinking that lay behind Cubism:
Read More