Rock at Sea

About this work

You see a sharp black rock rising from churning blue waves under a stormy sky. Jonson painted this after designing stage sets in Chicago. The jagged shapes and bold colors come from theater lighting tricks he used to make scenes feel dramatic. He was trying to show nature as something almost spiritual, not just realistic. If you like this, look up *impasto*—the thick, textured brushwork that makes the waves pop off the canvas.