Gloucester c. 1915

Maurice Prendergast made this watercolor, Gloucester, with the kind of joyful abandon that makes you want to pick up a brush. There's no faking that freshness. I love the way he lets the watercolor do its thing. It’s as if he’s in conversation with the medium, letting it pool and bleed in ways that create a feeling of shimmering light and atmosphere. Look at the rocks in the foreground, those bold, dark strokes capturing the weight and solidity of the stone, while also remaining totally fluid. Each mark feels like a small, intuitive decision that builds into a larger, expressive whole. Prendergast was definitely looking at what artists like Bonnard and Vuillard were doing in France. But he brought his own, very American sensibility to it. Like them, he shows us how painting can be less about representation and more about feeling, about capturing a fleeting moment.