The Sunken Road in Winter 1913

Othon Friesz made this painting of a sunken road in winter with oil on canvas. The road seems to fall away from us, dragging our eyes along the path. It’s all done with these juicy marks in muted greens, blues, and browns. Friesz applied the paint loosely, building up a sense of depth through overlapping strokes. You can feel the chill in the air, and hear the crunch of leaves underfoot. I can imagine him standing there, smock-clad, trying to capture the way the light filters through the bare branches. The figures dotted along the road, rendered with just a few strokes, add a touch of human presence to the scene. They remind me of Courbet's earthy realism mixed with Cezanne’s structural investigations. There's a dialogue happening here, across time and between artists. We can see Friesz engaging in the conversation, contributing his own voice and vision. Painting is an ongoing, ever-evolving process of call and response.