Morning. Pink gobelin. 1906

Konstantin Bogaevsky gave us "Morning. Pink Gobelin" and he did so by layering watercolor washes on paper, to create this dream-like landscape. Look how the colors are mixed right on the surface, thin veils of pigment blending into each other. It's like watching the world come into being, a landscape emerging from mist. The paint is so thin you can see the paper texture coming through. Notice the trees, almost like fluffy clouds on sticks, framing the scene. Then, your eyes are drawn to that central rock formation, like a stage set for a play that’s about to begin. There’s a looseness to the application, a real sense of the hand at work. It feels like Bogaevsky is inviting us to participate in the act of creation, to complete the image in our own minds. It reminds me of Arthur Dove's simplified forms and his interest in conveying spiritual themes through landscape. It’s a conversation, really, between the artist, the materials, and us.