Decoy Duck c. 1938

Rose Campbell-Gerke made this painting, Decoy Duck, with what looks like watercolor and maybe some gouache. I wonder what Rose was thinking when she was applying these curious marks and colors? Maybe she was amused, even laughing to herself, as she recreated the bird with these stippled, freckled marks? I’m thinking about how the process of painting is a form of play; a to-and-fro between thinking, seeing, and the actual doing of the work. I can really sense that back-and-forth in the making of this painting, with its loose, light touch. I am drawn to how this piece relates to the wider world of folk art, and how images can be distilled into something simple, yet beautiful. There’s an honesty and unpretentiousness to it all. Artists, you know, we’re all in conversation with each other, across time and space, and I think Rose is a part of that.