Saturday, December 1, 2007


A Van Gogh Road

Watercolor on rag paper, 6" x 6"
$125.00 + $6.00 shipping in US.
SOLD

Especially in his early years in Holland, Vincent Van Gogh did a lot of drawings and paintings of tree-lined roads like this that seemed to zoom away disconcertingly into infinity.

When I was a young artist painting landscapes in this valley, I used to curse that flat line of the valley floor, which became such a pervasive element of any design I came up with. I often thought of the Dutch landscape painters who, since they didn't have the background mountains, had to deal with an even more unremittingly flat landscape.

Nowdays I love that flat line. I've come to realize it's my anchor, a touchstone that goes to the core of my identity and my identification with this little piece of the world.

Looking anew at Van Gogh's haunting lanes traversing those endless level fields, I suspect he might have felt much the same.

4 comments:

Sheila Vaughan said...

I think this one is mesmerising Don. I love paintings which point to a possible journey somewhere. That wide open space feeling is also typical of Belgium and Holland. Yours colours are beautiful. I like strong water colours. Fantastic stuff.

A Reason to Paint said...

This is lovely and a perfect title.

Don Gray said...

Sheila, I really want to thank you for your generous comments. I've sure been enjoying your paintings.

Don Gray said...

Thanks, Triecia. Congratulations on launching your small paintings project. Good luck!