Town and Harbor 1938

Donald Greason's “Town and Harbor” is an ink wash drawing full of fluid and immediate gestures. I imagine him quickly moving the brush, loaded with diluted ink, across the paper, capturing the scene with impressive efficiency. The palette is restrained, almost monochromatic, but look at the subtle gradations of tone! The artist is making so much from so little. There’s the dark foreground, possibly a bridge, and the lighter middle ground depicting buildings, boats, and the water’s edge. Further back, the mountains seem to fade into the sky. I wonder what Greason was thinking, standing there, his hand moving so quickly. Did he want to capture the industrial feel of the place, or was he trying to convey something more personal, the way the light filters through the clouds, the quiet activity of the harbor? It’s a bit like a Marsden Hartley, but with a quicker, more confident hand. Artists, you know, we're always responding to each other across time. It's like a big, ongoing conversation where we get to chime in with our own marks and feelings.