Gunnar Anderson paints children at play, young girls raking leaves, and men idling away an hour. The themes stiffly test his sentiments, and prove them to be healthy. Charm can be authentic, and Anderson can find it in a moment while a little girl is absorbed in her own thoughts, in “Young Girl on Curb.”
Putting aside subject matter, Anderson’s paint-handling and modulations of colors are something to consider. Turquoise, moss green, grey—a really delicious combination of colors—appears in “The Boys.” Abstract form and pattern can be found in Anderson, as in the linear shadow of a junglegym in “The Playground.” His composition and application of paint could no doubt lead to some enjoyable abstract art, but, it would be a shame if Anderson changed his idiom because he is a needed rarity, the talented realistic painter who is willing to paint themes that have been so popular as to have become unpopular.
—Molly Siple
