Outskirts of East Gloucester 1918

Childe Hassam made "Outskirts of East Gloucester" with what looks like oil on canvas, and it's all about the dabs of color. See how the brushstrokes are kind of broken, like little puzzle pieces fitting together? This approach isn't about hiding the process, it’s the whole point. Up close, you can see the paint is applied in these little dashes, almost like mosaic tiles. Look at the big tree in the foreground. Each leaf is just a suggestion, a little flick of the wrist, but together they create this dense, shimmering form. The colors are muted but vibrant, all these greens and browns and grays dancing together. And then you step back, and it all comes together, like magic. Hassam was an American Impressionist, so he was really tuned into what the French guys like Monet and Pissarro were up to. But he brought his own Yankee sensibility to it all. It's like he's saying, "Yeah, I can do that too, but I'm gonna make it my own." Art is all about that conversation, that back-and-forth between artists across time.