La lune rousse 1958

Jean Bertholle, sometime during his life, made this painting, and called it 'La lune rousse' which translates from French as 'The Red Moon'. I like to imagine the brushstrokes were a kind of dance, a little bit jazzy, full of improvisation. The colors, muted reds and blues, create a moody atmosphere. The paint is applied in these thick, confident strokes, not trying to hide the process at all. Check out the textures up close; you can almost feel the bristles of the brush. The brown circle in the top right; it has so much going on. It feels like a world within a world. Bertholle reminds me of artists like Marsden Hartley, not so much in terms of style, but in how they both seemed to be searching for something beyond the surface of things. "La lune rousse" isn't trying to give us any answers; it’s more about posing the question.