Florida Scene Essay

1115 Words3 Pages

In 1877, Thomas Moran adventured to Fort George Island, Florida with his wife and conducted studies of trees and branches. Something special was noticed through his hours of study. The hazy blue sky, palm trees, and golden sand suggest a romantic desert island where people could escape their everyday lives. Florida Scene is an oil on canvas painting of the beautiful landscape of Florida. The creator who painted Florida Scene in 1878 is an artist by the name of Thomas Moran. The painting is currently on view at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The artist was greatly influenced by the beauty of Nature. It is a depiction of southern landscape in America. It has irregular shapes and shows the ocean, vegetation, and sky in a luscious landscape. …show more content…

The curving Palm tree in the center of the painting is the main focal point of this piece. The painting is so detailed it makes the viewer feel as if they are in the Sunshine State. In the background of the painting is a ship that seems very small away due to its size and passengers descending from the boat. The passengers are walking towards the viewer’s standpoint which creates a feeling of exploration and adventure. There are two people closer to the viewer’s standpoint which help to compare the distance to the other people who are further away. The boat is lacking detail intentionally. It is uncertain in the painting if the ship had crashed on shore or beached due to low tide. The passengers around the boat look as if they are downloading items off the ship. This allows to viewer to feel as if the ship is far away from their view point. The ship does not have as much detail as the palm tree and vegetation on the beach. Moran also depicts a feeling of motion in the painting. The painting of the sky also gives a feeling of space from the viewer’s standpoint. This beautiful painting was influenced by the fine details of …show more content…

All aspects of nature such as the ocean, beach, vegetation, trees, sky, and man-made objects create an interesting combinations to create a nature scene of the Sunshine State. The light blue-gray sky create an atmosphere for the viewer that they are in a warm climate. The dark green and lighter green trees and shrubs are colored in such a manner to depict the harsh sun on the beach. The taller trees and shrubs are dark and shielding the viewer’s standpoint from the sun. The smaller vegetation on the left side of the painting are lighter colored which express their exposure to the sun. There is a balance in the painting that is directly affected by the painter’s ability to have you imagine the size of objects and the position of the sun. The artist uses good asymmetric balance. There is a very busy scene on the left side of the painting as the people are abandoning their ship that is ashore. The right side of the painting and the main focal point is the vegetation and the towering palm tree. The tree and vegetation give a sense of calmness and beauty. Both sides of the painting create a significant

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