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2. 

It has been said that one can tell a true colorist by how he handles compositions in greys. By this standard Pippin shows himself a master colorist, as evidenced in his paintings of Christ, John Brown, Lincoln, and World War I. All make use of a muted palette but convey a striking intensity.

And in Pippin's more brilliant compositions each color has a special function--both structurally in the composition and emotionally in the poetic expression. In Cabin in the Cotton, the red in the sky plays dynamically against the darker and more intense red bandanna seen against a field of white cotton puffs, while cotton-like clouds create a spatial tension between the reds.

For these reasons, it seemed imperative to us that all of the catalog illustrations be reproduced in color. In black and white illustrations red and blue show as indifferent grey. But there is nothing indifferent in the art of Horace Pippin. He sees and paints with intensity. In Man on a Bench, it is important that the man sits on red slats, not grey slats. We therefore hope that the illustrations in tis catalog will serve as a lasting reminder of the art of this simple, powerful painter. His powers of expression with paint brush, and even with a red-hot poker to burn in his designs, need no further elaboration.