On the Bridge (Ober-Weimar) 1913

Lyonel Feininger made this painting, On the Bridge, with oil on canvas, we don’t know exactly when. You see the making so clearly here, each brushstroke distinct, building up to a fractured image of a figure on a bridge, or maybe it’s a street. The painting's surface is like a mosaic of color, thin layers and translucent hues create depth and luminosity, almost like stained glass. Look at the way Feininger uses these blues and whites to define the geometric forms of the bridge. The dark figure in the center is cropped, their form blending into the background, which creates a sense of mystery, like a fleeting moment captured in time. Feininger was really interested in Cubism and you see that here. It reminds me a bit of Marsden Hartley’s paintings, that same interest in simplified forms and expressive color. Ultimately, it’s the ambiguity that grabs me—a bridge, a street, a figure, all rendered in these shimmering, broken facets. It's a puzzle, and that’s what makes it so engaging.