Over the Great Divide 1908

Childe Hassam made this painting, "Over the Great Divide," with oil on canvas, and it's all about these expressive marks. Hassam isn't trying to blend things seamlessly; you can really see each stroke, each decision. Up close, the physicality of the paint jumps out at you. Thick impasto gives the clouds a sculptural quality, like they're rising right off the canvas. The colors are layered and mixed right on the surface, creating a lively, broken tone that feels so immediate. Look at the way he handles the horizon line—it's not a sharp edge, but a series of stabs and dashes of color, anchoring the expanse of sky and clouds. It makes me think of Courbet, with the realness of the mark and attention to the stuff of paint. It is a reminder that art is a conversation across time, where artists build on, react to, and reimagine the ideas of those who came before.