Broken Arc 1994 - 1997

Jacob Kainen made this very large painting, Broken Arc, with oil on canvas, but we don't know exactly when. It's all soft edges and diffused light, like a memory or a dream. I imagine him layering these colors, one over the other, almost dry brushing. The surface seems soft and chalky. Look how the pink hovers over a pale blue ground. I feel like Kainen starts with a general idea, maybe a sunset or a sunrise, but the process of painting takes over. The act of pushing paint around takes over! There's this beautiful conversation happening between the big warm circular shapes and the cool blues, that feels like the core of the painting. This broken arc seems to be referencing a wider arc of painters, those interested in color and light, like Turner or Rothko. Artists always build on the ideas of the past, so that we can keep seeing the world in new ways.