Monhegan Bell 1978

Jamie Wyeth created this painting of a bell, maybe on Monhegan Island, using what looks like watercolor, and some crayon or pencil too. It's all about process, right? You can feel Wyeth working through the image, layering the washes to build up this misty atmosphere. The bell is this solid, almost cartoon-like shape sitting right in front of the indistinct white house. I like how the red roof is handled, just a few swipes of color, flat, but full of implied texture. Look at the green of the bell – it’s not just one green, is it? There’s yellow, brown, even a little blue mixed in, which gives it this weathered, resonant quality. The bell is solid, but the colour says something else. It reminds me a bit of Fairfield Porter, who was also painting scenes of New England around the same time, but with a more domestic, interior feel. Here, the outdoor scene, and the singular bell, give a sense of something looming, but it’s open-ended. The meaning is in your head.