South to Cochise 2019

Mark Maggiori gave us South to Cochise, and it’s a scene bathed in a cool moonlight hue, the kind that makes everything feel a little surreal. Look at the cattle, how the painter's hand has moved through them. Each brushstroke feels deliberate, building up the forms, and giving a sense of the rough and tumble of the West. The color—almost monochromatic—is a bold move, giving the scene a dreamlike quality. You can feel the artist grappling with how to capture the vastness and quiet of the landscape. I wonder if Maggiori was thinking about Frederic Remington, or maybe even some of the Hudson River School painters when he made this? There's a conversation happening across time, artists riffing off each other. It’s a reminder that painting isn’t just about depicting something, it’s about feeling something, too, and letting that guide your hand.