The Swing 1913

William James Glackens made this painting, called The Swing, with oil paint in thick, luscious strokes. You can almost feel the artist making his marks, the dabs of color building up into these figures, into a field, into this daydreamy scene. I imagine Glackens, brush in hand, trying to capture a fleeting moment of light and joy. He must have stood there, squinting in the sunlight, mixing these gorgeous pinks and greens, smearing them onto the canvas with a kind of intuitive abandon. Look at the way the colors vibrate next to each other—the pinks of the tree against the blues of the sky. There is such happiness in his gestures. Painters are always in conversation, you know, a beautiful, silent dialogue across time. Glackens’ painting evokes the French Impressionists, like Renoir, who were also trying to capture the fleeting beauty of everyday life. But here, Glackens adds a little bit of his own American sensibility. It’s like he’s saying, “I see you, Renoir, and I’m going to paint my own version of this joy.”