Storm over Taos 1930

Curator: John Marin, a key figure in early American modernism, created this watercolor drawing, "Storm over Taos," in 1930. Editor: Whew, I can feel that storm brewing just by looking at it! It’s kind of thrilling and unsettling at the same time. Look at the heavy gray wash pressing down on that little cluster of buildings—it almost feels apocalyptic. Curator: Marin was deeply interested in the energy and dynamism of the landscape, moving between the urban environment of New York City and more rural locations like Taos, New Mexico. He sought to capture what he termed the “underlying forces” of nature. His perspective and depictions certainly captured a certain tension. Editor: Forces indeed. It looks like Taos is about to get swallowed whole! I mean, that’s some serious negative space up there creating such immense weight. And the town looks so fragile down there, almost like a child’s drawing. I think that contrast is what hits me the most. What a dramatic use of color and light to enhance and distort reality. Curator: This contrast, I think, reflects a broader theme in Marin’s work: the tension between the natural world and human constructions. His perspective shows the sublime power of nature to overwhelm and transform the built environment and reflects the broader context of economic and social uncertainty that Americans experienced during the Great Depression, where so many felt helpless and powerless in the face of unstoppable historical processes. Editor: Yeah, totally feeling that unease in the painting. Like nature is about to just shrug us all off. Still, there's beauty even in that anxiety, you know? Maybe it’s the loose brushwork, that immediacy he's able to capture with watercolors... Or perhaps its my personal reaction, but for all the chaos and stress portrayed, it’s gorgeous to simply sit back and absorb. Curator: Exactly. "Storm Over Taos" gives a poignant visual record of America's tumultuous relationship to place, power, and progress. Editor: So much for my sunny disposition; this painting just smacked me upside the head with a dose of reality. But in a strangely beautiful way.