Children in Woods 1905

Frank Benson made "Children in Woods," a painting now hanging in the Met. You can see how the brushstrokes build up these figures and the forest, one dab at a time. For me, painting is a lot like this – a kind of slow, thoughtful construction. Look at the way Benson uses white. It's not just "white," but a whole symphony of whites: creamy, pearly, and sun-drenched. The dresses of the children become like vessels for light. Then check out the shadows. The greens and browns are dragged across the canvas, a kind of messy shorthand for the density of the woods. See that thick stroke of green right at the bottom? It's almost like the whole painting is grounded by that one assertive mark. Benson reminds me a bit of Bonnard, in how he captures these fleeting moments of light and shadow. It’s like he's saying, "Hey, look at this! Isn't it beautiful, this ordinary moment?" Painting is about embracing that ambiguity, letting the beauty and the messiness coexist.