Rowboat 1958

David Park made this painting, ‘Rowboat’ with oil on canvas. You can really see Park’s hand in this work. The brushstrokes are present, loose, and alive with energy, which is something I look for in a painting. It is like he is saying, I made this! The paint handling in this painting is something to behold. The colors are scumbled together to create a sense of light and shadow, but also to give the painting a very tactile, material presence. Look at the ochre paint on the rowboat: it’s thick, almost sculptural. Then notice how it thins out as it meets the water. It is a dialogue between control and accident. I am reminded of Milton Avery, who, like Park, worked with familiar figurative subjects and a similar sense of process. Ultimately, it’s about seeing, feeling, and the ongoing conversation artists have across time. It’s not about fixed meanings, but about opening up possibilities.