Desert Canyon 2015

Rochelle Blumenfeld made this big canvas, Desert Canyon, with oil paint, though I don't know when. The canyon walls are built up with these strong, almost architectural strokes, like the land itself is under construction. Blumenfeld is pushing and pulling the paint, layering ochre and umber to create a powerful, tactile surface. It’s like she’s not just representing a canyon but building her own version of one. Look how she lets the brushstrokes remain visible, almost raw. In the lower area, the paint is thinned with turpentine, and these very direct marks are laid down with the brush, giving the painting a feeling of a landscape emerging from the darkness. It reminds me a little of Cezanne, how he used brushstrokes to construct form, but here it's more about the sheer drama of nature. Art is such an incredible conversation!