Carmel Valley Canyon 1994

Eyvind Earle made "Carmel Valley Canyon" using very flat, opaque blocks of colour and layers of contrasting dark hues. There is a real sense of control, which gives the image a dreamlike quality. Look at the way the light bounces off the canyon, creating a shimmering effect. The texture is smooth, the brushstrokes invisible, almost like a print, yet the repetition of small marks creates a kind of hypnotic intensity. Notice those little dots making up the foliage; they’re like individual atoms, each one carefully placed to create the illusion of depth and texture. Earle's landscapes remind me a little bit of Charles Burchfield's, although more stylized and less emotionally turbulent. It’s interesting how artists can take similar source material, like the natural world, and create such different visual languages. Art is a conversation, always borrowing and transforming.