Bogdo-Ul 1927

Nicholas Roerich made *Bogdo-Ul*, sometime in his career, with paint on canvas. It’s small but feels so expansive, doesn’t it? Roerich’s approach to color here reminds me of Diebenkorn. The color is broken up into flat planes, but with a muted range that gives it an airy quality. It’s the kind of picture that shows you how the process can be just as important as the subject matter. Look at how the white paint is applied to the mountain range. There's a rawness to the brushstrokes that feels honest and immediate. The texture of the canvas peeks through in places. I see a little bit of Marsden Hartley in this piece, too, in its directness and simplicity. Ultimately, *Bogdo-Ul* invites us to see the world not as a fixed thing, but as a constantly shifting landscape of color, texture, and emotion.