Big Sur Coastline 1989

Eyvind Earle's Big Sur Coastline, with its flat planes of colour, feels like a memory of a place seen through the lens of graphic design. I imagine the artist carefully layering thin washes of paint, each one defining a shape, building up a scene that's both representational and totally stylized. The palette is moody – blues that bleed into greens and yellows – creating a sense of depth and atmosphere. Look at the overhanging tree, its branches reaching across the composition like a skeletal arm. You can feel Earle's fascination with the natural world, and the graphic sensibility that was so popular mid-century. Earle, who was a background artist for Disney, was influenced by painters like Van Gogh and Cezanne, and his flat, stylized landscapes echo the Precisionist painters. I think Earle is in conversation with them, but he's also doing his own thing, simplifying and flattening the landscape into something that's both beautiful and kind of eerie. Painting, you see, is all about that ongoing chat between artists, isn't it? Each one adding their voice to the mix.