Pathfinder 1970

Ronnie Landfield made this painting, Pathfinder, with what looks like layers of diluted acrylic or maybe watercolor washes. You can see the process in the way the colors bleed and flow, a real dance between control and chance. The textures and colors are so tactile. It’s like looking at a sunset through a hazy filter. The bottom of the piece has a horizontal band of solid, opaque red, a grounding element against the ethereal, cloud-like forms above. Check out that area where the yellow meets the orange. There’s a delicate balance between them, like two feelings merging. Landfield’s work, especially his interest in color and light, puts me in mind of Turner’s atmospheric landscapes. Both artists use color to evoke a mood, but where Turner is dramatic, Landfield is more subdued, more contemplative. It reminds us that art is all about conversations, artists responding to artists across time, each bringing their own questions and experiences to the table.