Cain 1917

Lovis Corinth made this painting, "Cain", sometime during his career, using a pretty aggressive approach to mark-making with a limited colour palette. What I mean by that is that the way the paint has been put down on the canvas shows the process of the painting. The texture is really built up here, look at how thickly Corinth applied the paint, especially in the sky. He's really going for it, and the blues are all swirly and intense, which makes you feel the drama of the scene. The paint is opaque so it hides what is underneath. The dark figure of Cain, he’s the main focus, but the brushstrokes around him kind of dissolve his form into the chaotic background. It looks like he painted it all in one go. This reminds me a little of some of the German Expressionists, like Emil Nolde, who were also using expressive brushwork and intense colors to convey strong emotions. Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide how you feel when you look at it.