The Principessa's Champions 1966

Frank Mason made this painting, ‘The Principessa's Champions’ with generous brushstrokes in varying tones of brown, black, white, yellow and red. It’s a kind of cozy scene, a dog pile, with a very dark atmospheric background. I wonder about the artist, and what he was thinking when he was making this work. I imagine Mason starting with simple gestures, probably in a very loose way, and then slowly building the image up from those initial marks, adding layer upon layer of paint. The texture looks so tactile, almost as if you could reach out and feel the individual strands of hair. Look how he has captured a sense of weight, and the warmth of the bodies nestled together. I love how these painters allow us to really see—to slow down and appreciate the subtleties of tone and texture. It’s funny to think that this painting is part of a long and winding conversation with other painters across time. Each brushstroke, each choice of color, echoing and responding to the work of others, isn’t that wonderful?