Willows in Fog 1915

Gustave Loiseau made "Willows in Fog" with short strokes of pale color, like he was feeling his way through a hazy morning. I can almost see him standing there, squinting at the scene, dabbing his brush with lavender and rose. Did he mix the paint thickly, so it would hold those fleeting impressions? I bet he stepped back often, trying to capture the way the light softens everything. Look at how each touch of color seems to hover, building up the form of the trees and the ground without ever quite defining them. It’s like a memory, not quite solid, shifting in and out of focus. Painters, we're all in conversation with each other, aren't we? Loiseau was looking back at the Impressionists, while laying the groundwork for later artists to find new languages to articulate what they see and feel. And here we are now, still trying to translate the world in dabs of color and light.