Segovia 1916

Ernest Lawson’s ‘Segovia’ is thick with luscious paint. It looks like the painting came into being through trial, error, and intuition. I like to imagine Lawson standing before the view with his easel, grappling with the light, the colors, and the shapes, as he paints the hilltop city. The paint is applied so thickly that the surface of the painting becomes almost sculptural, the brushstrokes building up to create a tangible, textured landscape. Look at how the sky seems to pulsate with light as the cool blues and greens of the landscape complement the warmth of the buildings. Lawson has a gift for capturing atmosphere and mood, and for me, his work connects him to artists like Van Gogh, who also used the materiality of paint to convey emotion and experience. Lawson’s paintings feel like a conversation, a testament to the ongoing exchange of ideas and inspiration that fuels creativity across time. There is ambiguity, of course, in those brushstrokes, but they allow for multiple interpretations and meaning.