Katherine 1907

Clarence Gagnon made "Katherine" using oil paint with dynamic brushstrokes and a soft color palette. Imagine the artist, brush in hand, stepping back, squinting, and then stepping back in to make a mark. I sympathize, I do the same! Look at the way the colors play off each other, how the yellow and blue shapes on the white robe mimic the floral wallpaper behind. Gagnon seems to be thinking about domestic intimacy, an everyday moment, in a space of comfort. The paint is applied in loose, textured strokes, giving the surface a lively, almost shimmering quality. The gesture of the figure, arm raised, adjusting her hair, communicates a sense of private ritual. Think of other artists who were working at that time – Vuillard, Bonnard – all capturing fleeting moments of contemporary life. Painting is an ongoing exchange, it is about absorbing, responding, and then carrying that conversation forward.