Double Date 2017

"Double Date," by Carrie Graber, seems to conjure a very specific moment, a gathering, painted with precision and a cinematic eye. I imagine Graber, stepping into the cool dark air as she’s working, thinking about Edward Hopper, staging a scene with figures that feel both present and distant. The way the light hits the figures, the glow of the house, and the stillness of the water make me think about the painting process. The subtle gradations in the night sky, the reflections in the pool… It’s like she's slowly building up layers of meaning, one thin veil of paint at a time. The hard lines of the architecture and the soft curves of the figures create a tension that gives the painting its peculiar energy. It feels both timeless and very much of a specific era, like a memory half-forgotten. I think there is an ongoing conversation between painters, inspiring each other's creativity, even across generations.