Vermont Landscape 1943

Milton Avery made this Vermont landscape sketch, probably en plein air, on a page torn from a ring-bound sketchbook. I imagine Avery outside in a field, quickly capturing his surroundings with a flurry of blue pen strokes, trying to find the essence of the landscape before the light changes. There are scribbled bushes and rolling hills, sketched with repetitive marks, and little notes to himself about ‘blue grey clouds’ and something about ‘van grape’. There’s a real lightness of touch and a sensitivity to the scene. I know Avery is often associated with simplified forms and color-field painting, which he does so well in his paintings. But it’s nice to see him loosen up in this drawing – like Cy Twombly taking a vacation in Vermont. It’s a reminder that artists are always experimenting, always searching, and in dialogue with each other, even across generations.