Artist: Carl Blos

Carl Blos liked to paint at night, his studio lit by a single desk lamp that left his canvases half in shadow. He’d start with a quick charcoal sketch, then layer oil paint so thick it could stand a spoon up in the ridges. Look at Painting (1929), the fork of light on the table is almost touchable, while the rest fades like a memory.

If you’ve stood too long in a gallery corner trying to figure out where the light is coming from, this is your guy.