Kerity Landscape 1927

Louis Marcoussis made this painting, Kerity Landscape, with oil on canvas, and I can imagine him layering those colors, shifting the forms. I love the way he built up the surfaces, like the white building on the left, how it juts out, with so much texture. It feels like he added paint, scraped it away, and added some more. And those horizontals! They really emphasize the flatness of the picture plane, but also create a convincing feeling of depth. The brown and yellow hues are gorgeous, and I can see some Braque and Picasso, but also something unique to Marcoussis. Painters are always in conversation, picking up on what their friends are doing, and then pushing it in new directions. Painting is, for me, this ongoing exchange, this back and forth, of ideas and inspirations. What is so striking is the way that uncertainty and ambiguity can be embraced, allowing for multiple readings.