Fishing Wharf 1949

Philip Latimer Dike made this lithograph called ‘Fishing Wharf’ sometime in the 20th century. Right away you notice it’s all about the push and pull of black and white, a real study in contrasts. There's something kind of raw about the way Dike handles the lithographic crayon, you can almost feel him dragging it across the surface of the plate. Look at the pilings under the wharf, they're not just lines, they're thick, juicy strokes, full of texture. And the water, churning and alive with these gestural marks that give it so much energy. Then there's the sky, heavy and brooding, contrasting the bright patch of light on the horizon. Dike was a California regionalist, like Edward Hopper he finds the poetry in everyday scenes, the beauty in the mundane. But while Hopper is all about loneliness and isolation, Dike seems to find a kind of solace in the natural world. It's like he's saying, "Yeah, life can be tough, but look at this wharf, holding steady against the tide." And that's something I can definitely relate to.