Cobourg 3+1 more 1994

Peter Doig made this painting, ‘Cobourg 3+1 more’, by allowing the paint to drip and blur, giving the piece an ephemeral, dreamlike quality. Up close, you see how Doig embraces the materiality of paint. The surface is alive with texture. See how he’s used thin washes and thicker strokes, creating a push-and-pull effect. The figures at the bottom, obscured by these vertical marks, are like ghosts in the landscape. It's as if they’re part of the painting’s atmosphere, caught in the same rain or mist. Painters like Gerhard Richter come to mind when I see Doig’s work. Both explore the possibilities of blurring and dissolving imagery, creating paintings that are less about representation and more about the act of seeing itself. This piece invites us to slow down, to question what we see, and to find beauty in the blur.