All things bright and beautiful 2016

Amy Sherald’s painting "All Things Bright and Beautiful" is such a treat. Sherald is a magician with colour, especially in this one. The girl’s dress is such a vibrant purple, popping against that beautiful yellow background. I'm curious about the choice to render the figure itself in grayscale; it makes the figure stand out even more. What I love about Sherald’s work is how she mixes reality and something else—a dream, an idea. I imagine her in the studio, carefully mixing each shade, deciding where to let the colours sing and where to hold back. The girl’s pose, shading her eyes, almost makes her look like she’s searching for something or maybe shielding herself from a light. A gesture can mean so many things! There's something so open and hopeful in Sherald’s paintings and so grounded and real. I think it is important to remember that artists are inspired by one another across time. Each artist responds to what came before, reinterpreting and reimagining the possibilities of painting.