A Landscape at the west Coast of Jutland 1941

Niels Bjerre painted this landscape of the west coast of Jutland, but the date is unknown, and you know, that's okay. I look at the dark mass taking up the left of the picture, and it feels like a big shoulder. I know that feeling of wanting to get something down, of starting in a dark place, literally or metaphorically. Making a dark mark—a kind of anchor point—and then beginning to feel your way through. You can see how Bjerre has built up the lighter tones of the painting around this form. There's something very Scandinavian about the muted tones, the grey and white, and you can imagine him wrestling with the canvas, trying to evoke the atmosphere. I think he's doing what all painters do: trying to find a way to be true to an inner vision, maybe even a memory of a place. Painters are always in conversation, a constant sharing of ideas and ways of seeing.