The Sugar Shack 1976

Ernie Barnes made this scene, The Sugar Shack, maybe from memory, or maybe from a feeling of movement, with oil paint. Look at the way he’s built the figures with long, looping brushstrokes. The bodies are almost caricatures but they feel real. The earthy colors give a kind of weight, but the limbs are stretched out, elegant. Each person is a study in dynamic energy. See how the dancers are all reaching, moving in different directions, but still connected? It's all about that upward reach of limbs, echoing El Greco, who also loved to paint figures reaching for something, something maybe just out of grasp. Barnes has a way of making you feel the music, the sweat, and the joy in this crowded space. He’s not just painting a picture; he's painting an experience. You can almost hear the music.