Mauve Barn 1980

Eyvind Earle gave us this "Mauve Barn" and well, isn't it just yummy? The way he simplified everything into these smooth, dreamy shapes…it’s almost like a landscape from a lucid dream. I'm super drawn to the surface – it looks so smooth, like the paint was laid down with a surgeon's precision. The gradation of color in the tree is amazing. It’s not just purple, it’s a symphony of purples, one sliding into the next, making the form feel almost…alive. I can't help but think about the hours Earle must have spent getting those lines just right. And the barn! It's so geometric and flat, a total contrast to the curvy tree. It makes me think a little of Charles Sheeler's precisionism, but with this added layer of otherworldly color. It’s like Earle is saying, "Yeah, this is a barn, but it's also a feeling, a memory, a vibe." In the end, it reminds us that art is about the conversation as much as the statement.