Stage Backdrop 1935 - 1942

Perkins Harnly made this stage backdrop, probably with gouache or watercolor on paper, and it's a real charmer. The color palette is muted, almost pastel, with a sense of faded grandeur that I really dig. Harnly knew that art-making is about process, that the act of creating is as important as the final result. Look at the way the paint is applied. It’s thin, transparent in areas, and slightly textured in others. You can almost see the ghost of his hand moving across the paper. The columns look very real, but, the ornamentation and foliage are a bit clunky: in the bottom left, a very visible stroke of white paint creates a highlight on the vase. This tension of reality and illusion is what makes the piece so interesting. Harnly reminds me a little of Erte, an earlier stage designer and costume artist. Erte's Art Deco style shares a similar focus on glamour and theatricality, though with a more polished finish. This backdrop is a conversation across time, an exchange of ideas about beauty, performance, and the magic of the stage. It suggests fixed meanings, but embraces multiple interpretations.