Dowser 1998

Curator: “Dowser,” painted in 1998 by Bo Bartlett, depicts a young boy holding a forked branch against a vast, nearly empty landscape. Editor: It feels still, quiet. The light is almost otherworldly, focusing on the boy and his… divining rod? There’s a kind of haunting calm to the piece. Curator: Absolutely. The title is revealing: a dowser uses a forked stick to search for underground water or minerals. Symbolically, the boy might be searching for something less tangible – truth, perhaps, or connection to the land. Note the almost ritualistic manner in which he holds the branch. The forked branch, from antiquity to today, is often linked to accessing hidden knowledge. Editor: The realism is striking – especially the textures of the boy’s clothes and the way the light catches the field. But it’s more than just representation. I'm thinking about Bartlett's labor and his detailed approach to layering oil paint to achieve that level of detail. There's an interesting contrast in materials between the fabricated textiles worn by the child, a commodified and thus relatively cheap article of clothing, contrasted with a free tool given to us by nature to locate water: it's such a great depiction of our human engagement with materials, tools and progress. Curator: I think that’s a perceptive point. And I agree: The stick itself is a key element; as a natural artifact, it could connect us back to ancient animistic beliefs – where such rods were seen as instruments for communicating with the earth. The child, centered in the vast landscape, creates this echo of possibility… Editor: It's an interesting commentary, also, about the commodification of the natural world... or the ways we seek to own natural resources in the postindustrial West, as seen through this boy’s body, a tool among tools. And while some interpret the stick as representative of a "spiritual antenna," this representation, achieved using layers of paint mixed by an artist is likewise material. It's not spiritual until he engages the material to convey a spiritual message! Curator: I agree; seeing Bartlett focus his craft on this singular moment – the boy poised on the edge of adulthood and an unknown landscape – encourages a deeper examination of our cultural myths and desires. Editor: So, whether Bartlett is suggesting a return to pre-industrial ways, or showing our endless cycles of searching, this feels very self-aware. Thanks for pointing out so many historical echoes!