Rocks and Weeds 1951

John Atherton made this painting, Rocks and Weeds, sometime in the mid twentieth century using oil on canvas. It's a painting where everything feels built up from simple marks. There's no fussiness, just this direct, engaging process, especially in the way the shapes come together to suggest rocks and plants. The gray palette adds to the whole, focusing our attention on the textures and the relationships between forms, like a dance between light and shadow. Look closely, and you’ll see the paint isn't trying to hide anything. You can see the brushstrokes, the way the paint is layered, building up this almost tactile surface. The shapes feel almost architectural against the sky, but then there's something a little off about the perspective, making the whole thing feel alive and a little weird. The plants are built from simple lines, like these asterisks adding something unexpected to the scene. Atherton's work reminds me a little of Charles Burchfield; both artists find something really interesting and almost surreal in the everyday landscape. It's paintings like this that show us how seeing is always a creative act.