Painting No. 3

Painting No. 3 is from a large series of works produced by Marsden Hartley in Germany just before the the outbreak of World War I. Hartley had studied originally in New York under William Merritt Chase and had also befriended Alfred Stieglitz, already an important photographer and art promoter. Stieglitz suggested time in Europe; Hartley first fell in with Gertrude Stein’s Parisian circle (and the influence of Cezanne, Matisse, and Picasso) and then on to Berlin, where he became friends with Franz Marc and Wassily Kandinsky. Hartley internalized the European artists’ departure from realism and incorporated aspects of cubism, abstraction, and expressionism in his art while abroad.

The time in Berlin led to a series that folds all these influences into paintings that are filled with color, abstracted shapes, flattened planes, and military pageantry. Painting No. 3 seems to show celestial suns, stars, and comets dancing above a landscape. The images may also imply fireworks, or even those paper cones that could be filled with sweet treats from a candy shop. Most of the works from this series also include frames painted by the artist; they extend his imagery beyond the confines of the painting and meet us in our own spaces.

 - Brad