If you have ever fallen in love, you understand the thrill surrounding the early moments of any romantic relationship. The anticipation and excitement of the unknown swirls in the air and sends those involved eagerly into the intimate ritual of courtship.

Ted Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss, lays bare those very moments in this lush, surreal painting from the 1930’s. Mystery abounds as his Antlered Animal cautiously approaches the Pink Tufted Small Beast with an earnest eye and wide smile. The Small Beast, filled with the same anticipation, is perched atop an impossibly precarious tower, further alluding to the tension that fuels such moments.