July 14th at Havre 1906

Albert Marquet captured this street scene in Havre with oil on canvas. I love how the painting feels thrown together, like a quick sketch, but with real staying power. You can almost feel him dabbing at the canvas, trying to pin down the festive atmosphere with broad strokes of blues and reds, capturing the scene more than detailing it. Marquet's been out here in the street, jostling with the crowd, dodging flags, his senses are heightened, and he is trying to be a camera, with a heart, and so the picture is both fleeting and solid. There is something very human in the gestures. The whole scene is slightly off-kilter, like life itself. It reminds me that art is a conversation, an exchange across time. Marquet is talking to us, and we are talking back, adding our own layers of meaning to the mix.