Seascape 1935

Algernon Talmage made this Seascape, most likely outdoors with oils and a brush—maybe even a palette knife—to capture a fleeting moment of light and atmosphere. I imagine Talmage standing on the beach, squinting against the sun, trying to capture the way the light shimmers on the water. There’s this beautiful tension between the cool blues and grays of the sea and sky, and the warm yellows of the sand. The paint looks thin and fluid, like he’s working quickly to capture the scene before the light changes. I bet the birds flying up by the cliffs are there to remind us how quick time flies and to add a certain drama. There is a figure on the beach to the right; I wonder what they were doing at that moment and what they were thinking. Talmage was part of a generation of painters who were fascinated by the effects of light and atmosphere, much like the Impressionists. Artists are always looking at what other artists have done and trying to push things further, to find their own way of seeing the world and making marks that feel true to them. Painting is about trying to show the world, but it’s also about seeing and thinking.