October in the Midwest 1963

F. Leslie Thompson made "October in the Midwest" as a print, and I am struck by the harmony he created through a limited, though vibrant palette. It's like he's not just representing a scene, but also the feeling of autumn. The texture is smooth, but the composition feels alive. Look how he uses blues, oranges, yellows and reds to construct space and depth. Notice the trees in the foreground that frame the flowing stream, their fall foliage echoed in the distant hills. Each color feels thoughtfully applied, as if Thompson were making a kind of emotional map, where each hue carries a particular resonance. There's a quiet conversation happening here between realism and abstraction, especially in the bare branches of the tree on the left. It reminds me of Milton Avery's simplified forms. Both artists remind us that art isn't just about what we see, but how we see it, and how we feel about it.