Lenny Dykstra 1987

This loose and energetic watercolor, Lenny Dykstra, was painted by LeRoy Neiman. The watery washes and swift strokes feel like they are capturing a moment, the peak of action. Neiman’s brushstrokes are so gestural, they almost dissolve into abstraction. Look at the blues that define the sky and the player’s jersey: they aren't just colors, but traces of the artist's movement. There is an energy here, a sense of something fleeting, like the crack of a bat, all captured in these loose, vibrant marks. See how the green blends into the blues of the sky, creating a sense of atmosphere and place, while the red and blue on the baseball uniform feel like visual shorthand for the intensity of the game. It's funny, Neiman makes me think a bit of Joan Mitchell, even though their subjects are worlds apart. Both artists use color and gesture to convey feeling, to create a sense of movement and emotion. For Neiman, art seems to be an ongoing conversation, a way of capturing the pulse of life.