Afternoon Sky, Harney Desert 1908

Childe Hassam made this painting, Afternoon Sky, Harney Desert, with visible brushstrokes of yellow, blue and white. Look how the paint is dabbed onto the canvas in small strokes, like he’s trying to catch the fleeting light of the afternoon. I can just imagine Hassam standing there, squinting at the horizon, trying to capture the way the light shimmers across the desert. The paint is applied in little dashes, almost like he’s building up the image bit by bit. I bet he was chasing something that was almost impossible to catch. Think of the paintings of the French Impressionists. They were also out there, trying to record the fleeting effects of light and atmosphere. But Hassam brings an American sensibility to it all. Ultimately, artists keep the conversation flowing, riffing off each other across time. To me, painting is like that—an ongoing conversation where the meaning is always shifting, always open to new interpretations.