Before the Race

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Before the Race is typical of the work that Van Duzer made during his studies at the Cranbrook Academy of Art under Zoltan Sepeshy (who is also represented in the AAM collection). With its smooth chiaroscuro gradients, bright highlights, saturated colors, and generalized genre subject matter, it is reminiscent of both Sepeshy’s works from the same period and of American Scene painting more broadly. In the painting, the clear and orderly space of a large corral and grandstand serve to contain an energetic group of horses and riders. As they variously prepare and begin to steady themselves before a race, these figures visually overlap in the picture, creating a chaotic jumble of movement, activity, and apparent nervous anticipation. While three figures wear typical yellow or purple jockey’s uniforms, a fourth (closer to the center of the image with his face hidden) looks more like a South American gaucho with a tan shirt, flat-brimmed hat, and red scarf. His presence, along with the painting’s non-specific desert landscape, make the scene difficult to pin down geographically, turning it into a general image of sport and excitement, rather than a depiction of a particular moment or event.

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