Gay Madness (Gay Abstraction) 1933

Arthur Beecher Carles made this painting, named ‘Gay Madness’, with oil paint, maybe sometime around the 1930’s, but we don’t know exactly when. The brushstrokes are a riot of oranges, yellows, and greens, like a garden exploding with color. I can almost feel the artist’s hand moving across the canvas, each stroke a little burst of energy. Just imagine Carles, standing before the canvas, mixing colors, feeling the push and pull of the paint. The colors swirl and blend, creating a sense of depth and movement. It's a painting that seems to breathe, like it's alive and growing right before your eyes. I feel like he was in dialogue with painters like Matisse and Derain, those Fauvist painters. Painting is often a messy, intuitive process, full of false starts and unexpected discoveries. The way Carles lays down the paint feels like a conversation with himself, each brushstroke a response to the one before. It’s a beautiful reminder that art is not about perfection, but about the journey.