Boats at the Pontoon Dock 

Editor: This is Ion Pacea’s "Boats at the Pontoon Dock," and it looks like it's rendered in oil paint. There's a real freedom to the brushstrokes, especially the water, which gives it a bright and breezy feel, but I can't quite decide what the overall impression is. What do you make of it? Curator: Ah, yes, Pacea. I see a joyful dance of color and texture, wouldn’t you agree? Those blues and yellows positively sing! The heavy impasto brings to mind those summer days when the sun hits the water just so, almost blinding you with its brilliance. Can you sense that feeling? It's like he captured a fleeting moment, the essence of light and water rather than a precise representation. Editor: I can see that, the light definitely vibrates. But it almost feels abstract because it is so expressive. The forms of the boats barely seem to matter, it's all about the color and movement. Curator: Precisely! Think of the Fauves. Color liberated! Form secondary! Pacea allows color to express emotion. Each brushstroke is like a breath of fresh air, a pure sensation. This almost tilts towards total abstraction, doesn’t it? What feelings surface as you allow the work to permeate? Editor: It makes me feel, maybe unexpectedly, serene. The chaos of the brushstrokes somehow resolves into a peaceful image. It also has me thinking about capturing movement in painting. I can't stop trying to visualise what these docklands would have really been like and, in turn, the feeling of painting "en plein air". Curator: Beautifully articulated! Painting "en plein air," open air, is key here, isn’t it? Like a visual haiku, capturing the ephemeral quality of nature's beauty in its truest sense. And this little trip down to the docks also taught me more about *your* seeing; something for us both to savor today.