For this research point I was asked to research some historic and contemporary artists who work in series with the landscape.
The first artist I looked at was Monet. He is widely considered to be one of the leading impressionist landscape artists. Impressionists tended to focus on visible brushstrokes and accurate representations of light.
I decided to look at Monets ‘Coup de Vent’ (Gust of wind.) (1881)
‘Coup de Vent’ depicts a windy corner of the Normandy coast on a sunny day. It is one of a small group of four works that Monet painted at the end of the summer of this year.
Below are the other paintings.
These paintings show a variety of views of the coast, a view of the beach at low tide, a sea scape and another view of a grassy hill with the sea meeting the sky in the distance, with its main focus being a wind blown tree. I find it really interesting to see such different paintings of the same place, it really gives me, the viewer a feel for the place in its entirety.
In ‘Coup de Vent’ Monet has shown the summer season through his smooth brush strokes of the clear, light blue sky. These smooth brushstrokes appear to contrast with his multi directional expressive brushstrokes on his trees and long grass in order to portray the blustery wind.
I love ‘Coup de Vents’ use of perspective, how he has managed to show the sloping hills leading down into the sea and the subtlety of how the sea meets the horizon of the sky. I love his wide never ending sky that shows just a hint of the sun hiding in the shadows. But mostly I love how his use of impressionist brushstrokes give the painting atmosphere, I can almost feel the wind with those brushstrokes. The painting makes me feel alone but in a good way. More alone with nature rather than lonely? Maybe this is because Monet hasn’t included any people or anything manmade.
The next landscape artist I looked at was Cezanne.
Unlike the works of other impressionists Cézanne didn’t paint his work in the open air and observing from life, instead he painted them the way he wanted them to look.
His work often comprised of broad views of the landscape he was exploring. Below are some examples of his landscape work.
https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/paul-cezanne
The painting I decided to look at was ‘Intérieur de forêt (Forest Interior) (1898–99),
https://eclecticlight.co/2015/11/17/trees-in-the-landscape-6-paul-cezanne-and-constructive-strokes/
This is a painting of the inside of a forest. With tall trees and a clearing of rocks at the bottom of the painting. These trees appear to be on a hill with the rocks sloping downwards.
Like Monets ‘Coup de Vent’ Cézannes ‘Intérieur de forêt’ uses very unique brushstrokes, his short brushstrokes seem almost like angular shapes each filled with an intense colour. However unlike Monet, Cezannes brushstrokes appear almost abstract, as does the landscape he is trying to portray. The branches on his trees seem to be apart from their trunks and the rocks look more like simple forms or shapes rather than rocks.
Cezannes use of colour in this painting feels repetitive, almost like he is trying to portray or interpret a mood or feeling about the landscape rather than reproduce exactly what he saw.
Even though this painting doesn’t feel like an exact replica of what he saw, I feel like maybe this is an exact replica of how he felt? I love his simple composition and I love how his use of colour makes me think of autumn with the changing colours of the leaves and foliage. And I love how his use of rounded and abstract shapes make me feel like this is a safe and welcoming place to be.
The next landscape artist I looked at was David Hockney. Below is one example of his work. ‘Winter tunnel with snow’ oil on canvas 2006.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/jan/16/david-hockney-landscapes
This painting ‘Winter tunnel with snow’ centres on a path filled with snow, with trees and branches lining the path and two fields either side of the path. The brushstrokes in this painting seem quite stylised, with what appears to be lots of dabbing and flicking to represent the trees, branches and grass. The colours are quite bold and flat and they seem to be missing both texture and depth. I like Hockneys use of shadow on the snowy path under the trees, it is bold and obvious and even though I feel his use of colour isn’t realistic I still get a feel for the cold snowy path and the isolation of the whole painting. I love the way Hockney manages to show a sense of distance with the path, starting off wide and gradually closing in at the end and almost disappearing into the horizon, it makes me wonder about what lies at the end of the path?
I discovered that this painting is actually part of a series of paintings painted in the same location over different seasons and weather situations. Below are two more examples of Hockneys other versions. It is clear from these series of paintings that Hockney is interested in seasons and how the light in the different seasons and different times of the day create difference colours and experiences of the same place.
The next landscape artist I looked at was Peter Doig, a younger contemporary landscape artist who spent his life between the UK and Trinidad.
The painting I decided to look at is ‘White canoe oil on canvas 1990-1991’
This is a painting of a white canoe on a lake at night. The canoe is seen twice in the painting having been reflected in the lake along with the clouds and the stars and the foliage and branches of the trees. Even though this is a painting of night, the piece is filled with vibrant colour and a stillness which is doubled in the reflection of the lake.
My first impression of this painting is that it is reminiscent of a Jackson pollock piece with its vibrant seemingly splats of colour filling the space.
The colours used range from hues of orange and reds to blues and greens. These colours look almost fluorescent or ‘lit up’ against the background of the black night sky.
This painting does not look like a realistic portrayal of the actual view being depicted, instead it feels like a captured moment in time or an enchanted daydream of nature.
To me this painting oozes idilic tranquility and makes me feel reminiscent of warm summer nights on holiday.
The next artist I looked at was John Virtue, an English artist who specialises in monochrome landscapes. Below are some examples of his work.
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/virtue-landscape-no-624-t07915
https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/virtue-landscape-no-624-t07915
These monochrome landscapes are paintings of different landscapes/cityscapes of places that were personal to John virtue in England. They are all completed using acrylic paint and ink on canvas. They are all a very similar style and look as though dense layers of black ink have been built up and worked on across the canvas. I love the large bold marks Virtue makes, they are exciting and dramatic and really manage to create mood and portray emotion.
On first glance of Virtues work his paintings almost look abstract, but when you look closer there are often shapes that make out real buildings or trees, which prevents this work for being fully abstract.
John virtue is known for taking walks and making rough sketches as he walks then once back in his studio creates these massive landscape paintings of his experiences. This may be the reason for his paintings appearing semi abstract, maybe he was focussed on the mood or emotion of the piece rather than its physical representation?
I love John Virtues work I think his paintings are exciting and fresh. I love that he works in monochrome, to me it really sets his work apart from many of the landscape artists of the past.
The final artist I looked at was Nicholas Herbert and his series of drawings of the Chiltern Hills. These landscapes are special to me and close to my heart because this is where I live. Below are a selection of these works from his ‘Silent spaces’ exhibition:
http://www.nicholasherbert-drawings.co.uk/portfolio/2016-16.html
These works are a series of landscapes that have been inspired by the Chiltern Hills. They have been created with a mixture of media including graphite, pencil, acrylics, gouache, chalk, soft pastel and soluble crayon on paper.
I love the way Nicholas Herbert uses texture in his paintings and I love the way that texture manages to conjure up such atmosphere in his landscapes?
The colours used are mostly dull natural tones that to me summarise not only the Chiltern Hills but the British weather too. They make me feel like I’m outside on a cold blustery day.
Nicholas Herbert has said of his work
“I use my physical and emotional experiences of this area to capture within these works the essence of the landscape, its enduring mass, transient atmospherics and ephemeral qualities of light, as well as to express my own meditative thoughts, personal memories and those subconscious responses that I inevitably take from having been there.”
(Nicholas Herbert, (2018) (online) available from url:
http://www.nicholasherbert-drawings.co.uk/index.html
Accessed 27th February 2020)
To me these works are timeless and permanent, they really make me question the passing of time, how life moves on so quickly, yet these views of the Chiltern Hills stay the same? These landscapes make me feel solitude and silence? (Perhaps it is the title of the exhibition that makes me think this?)
To summarise, I have looked at a number of different and opposing historical and contemporary artists who work in series with the landscape including, Monet, Cezanne, Hockney, Doig, Virtue and Herbert.
I hope from this research that I have broadened my own knowledge on landscape art and I hope my inspiration from these exceptional works can influence my own work further.
Bibliography:
Christies. (2019) Claude Monet (1840-1926). At: https://www.christies.com/lotfinder/Lot/claude-monet-1840-1926-coup-de-vent-6155244-details.aspx (Accessed 20/10/2019).
The National Gallery. (2019) Paul Cezanne. At: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/paul-cezanne (Accessed 22/10/2019).
Pioch, N. (2002) Cezanne, Paul: Landscapes. At: https://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/cezanne/land/ (Accessed 22/10/2019).
Searle, A. (2012) David Hockney landscapes: The wold is not enough. At: https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2012/jan/16/david-hockney-landscapes (Accessed 25/10/2019).
Icon-Icon. (2017) The White Canoe, Peter Doig’s Symbol. At: http://www.icon-icon.com/en/the-white-canoe-peter-doigs-symbol/ (Accessed 25/02/2020).
Artsper magazine. (2020) Peter Doig: Master of Landscape. At: https://www.google.com/amp/s/blog.artsper.com/en/a-closer-look/peter-doig-master-landscaping/amp/ (Accessed 25/02/2020).
Sothebys. (2020) John Virtue. At: http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/lot.274.html/2016/bowie-collector-part-ii-modern-contemporary-art-day-auction-l16148 (Accessed 26/02/2020).
Tate. (2020) John Virtue. At: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/virtue-landscape-no-624-t07915 (Accessed 26/02/2020).
Nicholas Herbert. (2020) Landscape l948. At: http://www.nicholasherbert-drawings.co.uk/portfolio/2016-16.html (Accessed 27/02/2020).
Caitriona 