Stump 2000

Neil Welliver made "Stump," a square painting buzzing with greens, browns, and subtle blues. I can imagine Welliver, out in the Maine woods, studying this very subject, maybe in shifting light, maybe over several days. There’s something so matter-of-fact about painting a stump, and yet, it's also kind of profound, right? The layering of greens, the texture suggesting moss and decay – it feels so real, like you could reach out and touch it. It's that tension between representation and abstraction that gets me going: how close can you get to what you see, but still make a painting? This work reminds me a bit of Fairfield Porter or even Lois Dodd. You know, that back-to-basics, honest approach to painting what’s right in front of you. Artists are always looking at each other, borrowing, stealing, and riffing off ideas. Painting connects us through time, and connects each of us to the world.