Deerfield River 1942

Donald Carlisle Greason created this drawing, Deerfield River, with ink on paper. It’s kind of monochromatic, like a memory in sepia tones, and made of very few marks. The drawing has a wonderful sense of process. The marks feel immediate and intuitive, as if Greason was capturing the essence of the scene rather than trying to create a perfect representation. Look at how the ink bleeds and spreads across the paper! It creates a soft, almost dreamlike quality. I am drawn to the scribbled lines dancing above the trees, they give the work such freedom. These marks almost seem to float independently of the landscape. And it makes me think about how we construct our perceptions of the world. It reminds me a bit of the drawings of Cy Twombly in its understated quality. It’s a reminder that art is always a conversation, a back-and-forth between artists across time.