St. George (Painted on Deerskin) 1935 - 1942

This painting, St. George (Painted on Deerskin), was made by E. Boyd, but we don’t know exactly when. There's a very immediate quality to this painting – it’s not fussy, but direct. Imagine Boyd’s process; the deerskin laid out, the watery paint pooling and spreading. It’s so much about the material and the artist's hand. I can sense that the material is porous and textural, which no doubt informed the artist's approach. The blue horse and peachy ground feel so dreamlike, a bit medieval, like something from a storybook. The artist is very present. I love how the contours of the figures are confidently and simply drawn, especially the horse – it is not precise, but expressive. I wonder if Boyd was looking at early Renaissance paintings, or maybe folk art traditions? Artists are always in conversation, riffing off the past, finding new ways to see. For me, the piece speaks to the ongoing power of painting as a way of embodying stories, beliefs, and imagination.