Po-Tse-Water Eagle 1914

Robert Henri painted Po-Tse-Water Eagle with oil on canvas at an unknown date. Look at the way Henri deploys paint here, kind of juicy and direct. You can really see the hand of the artist, not fussed over, but definite. The surface has a life to it, look how the red of the sleeves is achieved with these broad strokes, not blended but alive with different shades. The blacks are so velvety, offset by the yellows that cut through the darkness. There's a real material presence here. The detail in the vest, those decorative elements, are rendered with a shorthand, almost a code. It reminds me of Arthur Dove, another American artist who was interested in reducing forms to their essence. Both artists share this approach that embraces ambiguity, leaving space for viewers to bring their own interpretations and experiences to the work. It’s less about what we see, and more about how we see.