Fritz Scholder

Field and Clouds

Similar to Pointillist painters, Fritz Scholder used small brushstrokes to create a field of color. In Field and Clouds, varying fauna points in multiple directions, emulating a windy day under thick clouds, which is visually comparable to Georgia O’Keeffe’s Sky Above Clouds IV at the Art Institute of Chicago. Painted in 1968 when Scholder was an instructor at the Institute of American Indian Arts, the work is likely a depiction of the New Mexican landscape. While New Mexico is typically known for its desert and mountainous terrain, Scholder centered the grasslands as a vibrant environment.