Beach Scene 1968

Malcolm Morley made this ‘Beach Scene’ painting, and it's like stepping into a vintage postcard with a twist of something a bit off. Look at that blue—it’s so flat, so intentionally artificial, that you know the whole thing is staged. The paint seems thinly applied, almost like a print, which clashes with the messy, human element of the scene. The dad crawling on the beach, giving his kid a ride, that's real life poking through the glossy surface. The colors are so saturated and bright that they create a strange, dreamlike quality. Take the palm tree in the corner, it’s almost neon, right? It's this juxtaposition of the banal and the bizarre that makes it so compelling. It reminds me a bit of David Hockney's early work, that same sense of California cool mixed with a detached, almost cynical gaze. Art isn't about answers; it's about making you see the question in a new light.