Dedication to Van Gogh 1946

Forrest Bess made this painting, "Dedication to Van Gogh", with what looks like simple oil paint, and a simple idea: stripes meeting sky. I love how the thick paint gives it this raw, almost primitive feel. The stripes of red and black pulse with a kind of manic energy, like a field seen through fevered eyes. And then there's that sky – thick white impasto streaked with yellows, and the single black sun or moon, like a void staring back at us. The painting is bumpy and uneven. You can almost feel the artist's hand, the pressure of the brush, the urgency of the gesture. That black dot, slightly off-center, adds a touch of unease. It reminds me of Myron Stout's pared-down forms, the way he could distill an entire universe into a few simple shapes. Bess's painting is definitely a conversation, reaching back to Van Gogh, but also forward to something entirely his own. It's not about answers, but about the restless, searching quality of art itself.