River Epte, Giverny 1910

Rose O’Neill painted River Epte, Giverny with oil on canvas, and straight away, I can tell that artmaking for her was a dance with intuition. Look at the way the light shimmers on the water, all those blues, greens, and yellows thrown together! Up close, you can almost feel the thickness of the paint, like she built the scene layer by layer. I love how the tree trunks are rendered in strokes of pink and lavender. It gives the whole scene a dreamy, otherworldly feel, right? See how the leaves are just dabs and dashes of color? There's this one spot, where the light hits the water just so, and it's like the whole painting is vibrating with energy. It makes me think of Monet, but with a touch more whimsy. It’s as if O’Neill is reminding us that art is as much about feeling as it is about seeing.