Morning Has Broken

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on May 26, 2014 at 7:25pm

Curator’s Comments:

 

Morning has Broken nicely weaves the animal subject into the space with fine layers of semi-transparent color.  While small features are skillfully rendered such as the dragonfly frozen in flight and the knotty driftwood in the swampy foreground, the lone egret maintains a diaphanous movement as it partially dissolves into the multi-hued landscape.  The bird’s yellow tipped bill for instance, appears to project or lead the path of watery yellow mist in the top section of the piece, while the opaque white webbing trails through the remainder of the painting. The overall handling of the medium sets apart separate liquid pools of color and areas of interest while uniting the scene through a strong elemental motif.   The painting’s subtlety is its strength. The piece entitled Red Moose shares this sympathetic merging of figure and ground, while presenting the animal in regal grandeur.  The color system and cross between hot and hold temperature is much more extreme than the later piece, but this suits the bold form. Both of these works nicely transcend the subject and create an environment that embodies the essence of a sentient being rather than emphasize detailed observance of its outward appearance.