The Balloon 1907

Maurice Prendergast made this watercolour, called The Balloon, sometime in his lifetime. Isn’t it lovely how the blue washes pool in the trees, like someone spilled a bucket of sky right there? The way Prendergast lets the paint run gives the whole scene this breezy, carefree feel. If you look close, you can see how the pigment settles into the paper’s texture, creating these little granular effects. It’s almost like he’s not just painting a scene, but also letting the water do its own thing, pushing and pulling the color around. See that figure on the right with the blue parasol? The confident daubs of colour create form and texture simultaneously. This watercolour reminds me a lot of Bonnard, both artists are masters of capturing fleeting moments with this loose, dreamy quality. There’s no right or wrong way to see this. It’s all about finding your own connection and letting the colours and shapes lead you.