Corn Stacks, Pownal , VT 1949

Frank Mason made this painting, “Corn Stacks, Pownal, VT,” with what looks like oil on canvas, though the date is unknown. I love the soft, muted palette. It’s not about high contrast but how one tone subtly shifts into another. You can almost feel Mason mixing the colors right on the canvas. Up close, I’m really drawn to how the sky is built up. The paint looks thin in places, almost like a wash, but then there are thicker dabs that give the clouds real form. There’s a kind of looseness that makes the scene feel so alive. And those corn stacks! They’re not just objects in a field; each one has its own character, its own texture. It reminds me how much painting is about touch and feel, the physicality of moving paint around. Mason’s work makes me think of Corot, with a similar sensitivity to light and atmosphere, but with a more American sensibility. The beauty of art is that it allows us to see the world, even familiar landscapes, in totally new and unexpected ways.