Description

Dove frequently listened to music as he painted, and was particularly interested in the improvisational qualities of jazz. His diaries make reference to favorite music ranging from Louis Armstrong and George Gershwin to the popular big band sounds of Paul Whiteman and Bing Crosby and even the avant-garde work of Igor Stravinsky. Like Kandinsky, Dove was interested in the concept of synesthesia, or the interaction of the various senses of perception. In these late watercolors and drawings from his personal sketchbooks, he continued to work with the idea that certain combinations of form, color, and line could evoke the same emotional and physical responses as the harmonies of musical sound.