Mount Katahdin, Maine 1942

Marsden Hartley made this painting of Mount Katahdin in Maine, using oil on masonite, and there’s something really powerful about how he’s approached the landscape here. I mean, look at the texture of the paint, how it’s almost scrubbed onto the surface, creating this real sense of rawness. You can practically feel the chill in the air, the ruggedness of the mountains. I’m drawn to the way he’s handled those clouds, they’re like these looming presences, adding to the drama of the scene. And then there’s that vivid red of the forest, contrasted with the cool blues of the mountains and the water, it's like he’s capturing the raw energy of the place. It reminds me a little of some of Milton Avery's landscapes, in the way he simplifies forms and emphasizes color, but Hartley's got this wildness to it. Hartley’s not trying to give us a postcard view, he’s giving us the feeling of being there, confronting the power and beauty of nature.