On the Danube Canal 1907

Richard Gerstl made this small landscape painting ‘On the Danube Canal’ using oil on canvas. I can almost see him working at his easel, the brushstrokes thick and loaded with a range of greens, browns, and greys. There’s a real urgency in the way he’s applied the paint, and I wonder what he was thinking as he captured this scene. Was he wrestling with the painting? Or was it pure joy? He certainly wasn’t timid. Look how he lets the brushstrokes stand alone, creating texture and form with each dab and swipe. The buildings seem to emerge from the sky as the sky emerges from the buildings. Even the trees look like the buildings. Gerstl has such a distinctive style, and you can see him in conversation with other painters of the time, like Klimt and Schiele, each pushing the boundaries of expression and representation in their own way. For me, this painting is a reminder of the enduring power of paint and the ongoing conversation between artists across time. It’s full of questions and possibilities.