Children Playing 

Charles Blackman's 'Children Playing' is a painting of figures rendered in oil paint, likely on canvas or board. Here, the paint has been applied quite thinly, almost like a wash, so the texture of the ground is still visible underneath. Blackman's material choices are not particularly unusual, but the way he’s handled the paint really sets this picture apart. There are many thin layers of paint worked on top of each other, to create a kind of glowing effect, and these techniques imbue the work with a distinct cultural significance. These methods are not unique to the fine arts; they overlap with decorative painting and even commercial art practices. This invites us to consider how Blackman’s painting operates within a wider ecosystem of visual culture. Ultimately, Blackman's work prompts us to think about the value we place on different kinds of making, and the arbitrary distinctions we often draw between fine art and other forms of creative labor.