Holy Mountain IV 1946

Horace Pippin made ‘Holy Mountain IV’ with paint and probably a brush, but maybe also with his hands. It’s kind of like an illustration, almost cartoonish, and yet it feels so serious. I imagine Pippin figuring out the relationship between the animals and the mountain – how close or far apart they should be to each other in space. It makes me think about his thoughts on the world and what is holy to him. It feels biblical, but in a primal and personal way. The paint itself is really thin, washy, and transparent, which gives the whole thing a ghostly, dreamlike feeling. Look at that tree – a simple, dark, upright form. There is a kind of finality in the shape that gives the scene its structure. I wonder if Pippin knew other painters, if he ever looked at, say, Milton Avery? They both share a similar vision. The way the negative space is as important as the positive form! You get a real sense that painting is an ongoing conversation.