Study for General Meade 1994

Edwin Austin Abbey created this study of General Meade with oil paint, but you can really see the paper coming through the washes of colour. The image feels like it has emerged through trial and error, and I bet there were lots of mistakes along the way. I imagine Abbey was experimenting with how to capture the man’s essence, his character. The way he’s rendered the beard, with these thick daubs of paint, makes me think of a stormy sea. The texture is so palpable, you can almost feel the roughness against your skin. And those eyes! You can feel the weight of responsibility in that gaze, and the artist’s determination to capture something truthful. I wonder, did he have a clear idea of what he wanted to achieve from the outset, or did it evolve as he worked, each mark informing the next? All painters are in conversation with each other, across time, inspiring creativity. This piece really demonstrates how painting is a form of embodied expression, embracing ambiguity and uncertainty.