Charles E. Burchfield, Journals, January 4, 1940

Jan 4, 1940 (Thurs.) –
Last night – [Bertha] & I, [Martha] & [Mary Alice] & G.R. to Kenmore theatre to see once again the Heifetz picture – which seemed as good as the [sic] on the first viewing –
Morning walk – Letter from Louise –
[By the R.R. a strange sky – great loose indefinite expanses of misty clouds – which diffuse the rays of the invisible sun in such a way that an ominous yellow pallor seems to shine down on the earth in all directions. I thought – to paint that warm sky one should make first a wash of zinc yellow – then a wash of cobalt blue & cobalt violet, with Dary’s Gray to get the musky sullen effects – I wonder if that would get it.]
Trees & freight cars – I thought of an intensive painting to get a super-realistic summary of such a scene.
_______________
Three Dreams last night.
Spotty barking aroused me. I fell asleep and dreamed that I went down and outdoors to see what alarmed her. I saw that water was running out from the porch over the front lawn, and even as I
76) watched, it suddenly increased in volume, welling up furiously from all sides of the porch. I ran into the house and went down cellar which filled so rapidly with water that I had to retreat upstairs – My first thought was “it will ruin all our jam and canned fruit” – I went upstairs to rouse Bertha, and hardly had I gotten up there when the whole downstairs was filled, - then I awoke.
2nd Dream –
[I was taking a caller out to visit my studio, which was built on low piles in the middle of a road, but shallow steam, and which was reached by a built up path. As we entered the studio, I saw that the floor was all warped, and sagging and water seeping in, in pools; then suddenly, the water lifted the building from the piles, and we started to slip slowly downstream, towards a dam. Horrified, I thought of all my work in the studio, and then of the fact that if we went over the dam, we could be killed or badly hurt. The studio, did in fact slip out over the edge of the dam more than a third of its length, and there it swayed in the balance, threatening at any moment to crash. I saved the situation by seizing hold of the floor, and pulling the whole building back out of danger.]
The 3rd dream is more obscure; but I had been sketching in the country south of here; as I was about to leave to get a bus home, I was attracted by a queer looking vehicle in the road which seemed a sort of combination of a bicycle and auto – the pedals were in front, of cast iron, and worked straight up and down instead of the normal way, and there were two seats in the back for passengers. It seemed to belong to a salesman who took orders for a chain-store grocery in the villages round about. He offered to take me home, but first invited me to his home for lunch. I remember little of the visit to his home, except that when I pulled some change out of my pocket, his mother asked to see the pennies. She collected pennies and was lacking a 1904. I thought to myself that I would go to Aldred’s, and buy the coin for her and send it to her.
____________
(I know in my heart, that I have not yet been put to the test. I cannot criticize the pessimism and despair of these artists who have been ruined by the world chaos. In other words, I still have a living, and cannot understand their problem. When I am in the position, will I be any better? I am afraid not.)
_____________
P.M. Arthur & I to see Gulliver’s Travels. An enjoyable film. While it had some glaring faults (Gulliver himself was not very good, and the prince & princess left a lot to be desired) – The articulation of these three was not as well thought out as those of the more grotesque characters – or is the imperfection coordination of movements in these latter less noticeable? – But it was full of quaint bits of whimsy, and fantasy, and in shots uproariously funny.
To market afterwards for fish. It was much colder.
_____________
Evening take girls to basketball game at Ebenezer. I left them, went back home and played tiddly-winks with [Bertha] & [Arthur]. At 9:30 I went for them – saw the 3rd & 4th quarters – enough for me.
Charles E. Burchfield, January 4, 1940