Spirit On High 1995

Ronnie Landfield made Spirit on High with large brushstrokes in a fan-like motion using a palette of blues, reds, yellows and purples. The image is a beautiful burst of energy. I imagine Landfield standing before a large canvas, loaded brush in hand, making these broad sweeping gestures. It’s almost as if he's trying to capture something fleeting, a moment of inspiration, a high note. I can relate to that. Sometimes, you just want to let loose and let the paint do its thing. Look at how the colors blend and bleed into each other. This gives the painting a sense of depth and movement. You can see a lineage of abstract expressionists like Helen Frankenthaler, but with its own distinct energy. It’s a reminder that we painters are all in conversation with each other, riffing on the ideas of those who came before us. Landfield offers a vision of painting as an open-ended invitation for exploration.