Lighthouse 1915

Marsden Hartley made this painting, Lighthouse, with oil paint, and I'm really struck by how he's working here. It’s all about how he puts the paint down, not about making things look "real." Look at how thick the paint is; you can almost feel it. The colors are bold and kind of clash, red against green, yellow with white. It’s a bit like he’s building this lighthouse out of color and texture. Notice the way the white snakes up the red tower, dotted with green circles. It almost feels like a playful game. Hartley's not trying to trick you into seeing a real lighthouse, instead he's trying to convey something about how we see, and how we experience the world. This reminds me of some of the playful, almost childlike symbolism you get in the work of someone like Forrest Bess. Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide what it means.