Penfolds Magill Estate 

Dorrit Black captured this view of Penfolds Magill Estate in watercolor, likely en plein air. We can consider watercolor a traditional art material, but Black's rendering, with simplified forms and bold colors, is anything but conventional. The inherent fluidity of watercolor allowed Black to capture the South Australian landscape with a light, airy quality. But it is a deceptive medium; the artist can't simply splash the paint around. Each mark had to be carefully placed, working with the white of the paper to create a sense of light and shadow, substance and weight. It is interesting to consider the social context here: Penfolds is, of course, a commercial enterprise, driven by labor and industrial production. But Black’s focus is on the pictorial image, not the processes behind it. Looking at this picture, we can see that the artist's skilled handling of materials elevates a scene of labor and production into something beautiful. It challenges our assumptions about what fine art can be.