Pheasant 1985

Viorel Marginean painted this "Pheasant" with oils, and you can almost feel him working, stepping back, squinting, then leaning in again. I wonder what it’s like for him to be in front of this image, trying to wrestle the essence of the bird onto the canvas. The feathers aren't just brown, are they? Look closely. There's a party of colors going on there: burnt sienna, a touch of teal, and a little burnt umber! You can feel the artist discovering the world in front of him, bit by bit, like a detective. The paint is applied loosely, which feels very generous. There’s a bit of a scumble, a scrubby sort of mark-making, especially in the grasses. It reminds me a bit of Courbet, this painting – that same earthy, grounded, “let’s get real” feeling. Painting is a conversation, and we painters, we're all just riffing off each other, across time and space. And what’s so beautiful is that it's never a final word, always an open question.