Landscape by the sea 1904

Willy Schlobach painted this Landscape by the Sea, and what strikes me is how he captured light and movement through these short, deliberate brushstrokes. It's like he's translating the energy of the scene directly onto the canvas, where the artmaking itself becomes the subject. Looking at the way Schlobach builds up the texture, the physical properties of paint become really apparent. Notice the cliffside on the left with the way the dark blues and purples suggest depth and shadow. He's not trying to hide the way the paint sits on the surface; instead, he celebrates it. Those visible brushstrokes feel like a kind of record of the artist's movements, like they’re tracking time. Schlobach reminds me of other painters like Émile Bernard who embraced the texture and expressive qualities of the paint itself. Ultimately, this is art about art, isn't it? It's about process and the ongoing conversation between artists across time.