Turquoise sky, pink mountains, purple foot 1940

This is Nicholas Roerich's “Turquoise sky, pink mountains, purple foot," and you know, I can almost feel him painting this. Look at the way the brush drags the paint, creating a sense of texture, like feeling the cool smoothness of stone. The colors are so distinct, not really blended, with that clear turquoise sky meeting the rosy, pink mountains. There’s a directness here, like Roerich just went right at it. I imagine he's thinking about how color affects mood, and it is so specific. Like he is saying, 'I am going to use this color so you feel this feeling.' I always wonder what it's like for landscape painters trying to capture the sublime. It's something I think all painters grapple with; how can we make something big out of something small? It is an age-old question, but Roerich approaches it so directly. Painters, we all inspire each other across time, across place, across feeling. It's never a one-way conversation and is open for interpretation.