Hitchhiker 1990

Editor: We're looking at Peter Doig's "Hitchhiker" from 1990, rendered in oil paint. The scene has such an overwhelming, almost isolating feeling because of the juxtaposition of the vast landscape with that single red truck. How do you interpret the formal elements here? Curator: Immediately striking is the flattening of space. Note the verticality of the brushstrokes in the field, counterposed with the lateral emphasis of the horizon line and the road. The colour palette—predominantly greens and muted blues—creates a visual unity. This, in turn, draws focus to the truck as a pop of contrasting red and a focal point. How does the placement of the truck within the composition strike you? Editor: It feels… purposeful. Not quite centered, but strategically placed to emphasize the distance and the scale of the environment. Are there elements of abstraction at play, despite it feeling realist at first glance? Curator: Indeed. Observe the treatment of the sky. While there’s a representational quality to the clouds, their forms are rendered with loose, expressive brushwork. These painterly gestures interrupt any complete illusion of realism. The semiotic relationship between form and function creates this tension and engages the viewer. Editor: It makes me think about the surface quality itself; the texture of the oil paint becomes as important as the image it depicts. The brushstrokes don’t just create a landscape, but assert their own presence as brushstrokes. Curator: Precisely. The materiality of the oil paint itself is not subservient to representation. It announces its presence through visible texture and handling. Think also how light and shadow are represented with what appears, at first, a rather muted palette; Doig achieves incredible tonal variation with a relatively small chromatic range. It is more about the gesture and line. What’s your final thought? Editor: I initially saw a landscape, but looking closer, I appreciate how the artist balances representation and the physical qualities of the paint itself to communicate scale, distance, and, unexpectedly, intimacy. Curator: And, in recognizing those artistic strategies, we see how Doig transforms what seems a simple landscape into a space that invites reflection.