The Avenue in the Rain 1917

Childe Hassam made ‘The Avenue in the Rain’ with oil on canvas, at a time and place we can only guess at through the painterly marks. The process looks like a real dance with the materials. I love the thick strokes of blue that make up the street. It’s almost as if Hassam sculpted the rain, giving it a real physical presence. The flags are like bursts of pure energy, all red and white against the cool blue, their reflections shimmering on the wet ground. Look how each dab and stroke is so deliberate, building up the image bit by bit. It’s like he’s not just painting what he sees, but also how he feels being there. There's something about the way Hassam captures light and atmosphere in this work, those small strokes of colour, that reminds me of Monet. But Hassam has his own thing going on, his own way of seeing the world and making it come alive on canvas. Art's not about finding one right answer but about opening up all sorts of possibilities, you know?