Quay at Dieppe 1905

Gustave Loiseau made this scene of the Quay at Dieppe with short, choppy brushstrokes in a range of greens, yellows, and blues. I can almost feel the give and take, the back and forth, as Loiseau applied the paint, a dance of trial and error. I imagine him standing there, squinting at the light, maybe with a slight breeze coming off the water, trying to capture not just what he sees but how it feels to be there. Look at how those little dabs of paint create a shimmering effect, especially in the sky and water – it’s like he’s conjuring the atmosphere itself. There is a sensitivity to the materiality of paint. Painters have been doing this for centuries, each one finding their way to express something unique, building on what came before, arguing with it, pushing it further. Loiseau's gestures and brushstrokes communicate so much about the fleeting nature of light and the artist's own experience. It's less about perfection, and more about capturing a moment, an impression.