Landscape with Figures 

Carlos Orozco Romero made this painting with oil on canvas; the artist is perhaps best known for his murals. Notice the broad strokes and thin washes that evoke the expansive landscape. It's easy to imagine him moving his brush with great deliberation across the canvas. The subdued palette creates a tranquil and ethereal atmosphere, reflective of a dreamlike quality that permeates much of Romero's work. But despite this apparent ease, the work’s quiet scene of labor reminds us of the artist's hand and the effort involved in taming the Mexican landscape. The figures in the painting seem humble and hardworking, almost fused to the land itself. The painting elevates their existence. In the end, Romero asks us to consider the cultural significance of materials and processes in understanding what art is. He blurs the boundaries between high art and the everyday lives of ordinary people.