Beautiful Grey

Port Clyde

For a number of years I have subscribed to the brilliant Robert & Sara Genn's Twice-Weekly Letters. Originally written by Canadian landscape painter Robert Genn, since his death earlier this year they are now written by Sara, who includes reprises of her father's inspirational messages.

Here is an excerpt from her latest:

Rue de Buade #1

"Grey is the jazz of colour. When done right, grey is a soul-stirring, weep-worthy passage of luminosity and glow -- a vibration-maker. Virtuosity is achieved by relinquishing black and understanding the Munsell Colour System. You need only invest in a colour wheel, then begin to break it up and take it apart.

Montmartre #2

"Something unexpected happens with grey. The colour itself seems to understand the power of in-between, like suspended twilight or ineffable places of attachment. Perhaps the narrative material is less apparent in grey -- her stories curtained or over-shone by louder, simpler truths. In the meantime, grey's meanings remain fluid. In the language of painting, understanding grey separates us from the obvious. We are removed from the one-note or cacophony of primaries and moved closer to poetry."

Open Window, Cesis

To read the entire item, click here. Like most of the Genn essays, this one is directed primarily to painters, but offers valuable insight to artists in all mediums, and to art lovers too.