Winter Landscape 1914

Ernest Lawson made this “Winter Landscape” with oil on canvas, and it’s not just a picture; it's like a recipe. Lawson throws together a bunch of greens and whites, kind of like a wintery soup, and it gives you this chilly feeling. He doesn’t just paint what he sees; he’s feeling it, and then he’s slinging it on the canvas. You can see where he’s dug in with the brush, how he's layered the paint, making these chunky snow drifts. Take a look at the way the water reflects the light, all fractured and shimmering. It’s not just water, it's an idea of water, the feel of it, cold and moving. It reminds me a little of Courbet, the way he wrestled with paint to make something real, but Lawson's got his own thing going on here. It's a landscape, sure, but it’s also this whole world of feeling and seeing all stirred together.