Frederic Edwin Church's epic "Aurora Borealis" is a classic example of the Hudson River School, depicting the alien and extreme world of our planet's ice clad artic realm. While the Hudson River School is normally associated with the New World of present day America, and the American west, Church ventures north to find a wilderness, so remote and hospitable that it is still one of the wildest regions on earth to this day.
The first thing you notice is the scale of the painting and the ratios imposed by the Church. The sky dominates the painting taking up 2/3 of the canvas while the remaining third contains all of the land, sea, and man. The sky is dominated by the Aurora Borealis as it arches across the canvas with colors changing from a soft blue to a violent
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The human element of this painting is seen in the ice locked schooner and a dog sled team approaching the ship. The lighting of the painting is surreal as the visible stars reveal it is night, but the shadows of the mountains suggest the ambient light is originating from the Aurora Borealis. The Icepack is craggy and asymmetrical, and directly reflects the color scheme of the Aurora. Church applied the same Hudson River School principles, which were popular and prevalent at the time, to this Articscape. The open landscape, impressive use of scale, perspective, and painting style which makes the focal point seem almost endless, are all present, as is popular in Hudson River School paintings, yet Church bypassing the stereotypical forestscape and illustrating the sterile, desolate plains of the arctic ice pack. The Aurora Borealis dominates the scene, affecting almost every inch of the canvas whether through the lights themselves or ominous reflection on the ice sheet. Little was known about the Aurora at the time and it was easy for people of the time to align this alien phenomenon with the new Romantic notion that the incredible complexity and ingenuity of natural
Additionally, Lie placed tall trees in the foreground of the painting to give a sense of the scale between the observer’s perspective and surrounding objects. Furthermore, Lie used dark, cold colors, such as purple, blue and black, to depict the feeling of a winter’s afternoon. Lie also used snow on the ground as an obvious indicator of the time frame in which the painting is occurring. However, in contrast to the dark cold colors used, Lie also used subtle hints of orange, yellow and red to show that there is some presence of light in the piece. The background of the painting is a sheen of yellow, suggesting the presence of light and the forming sunset.
This work shows impeccably drawn beech and basswood trees. It was painted for a New York collector by the name of Abraham M. Cozzens who was then a member of the executive committee of the American Art-Union. The painting shows a new trend in the work of the Hudson River School. It depicts a scene showing a tranquil mood. Durand was influenced by the work of the English landscape painter John Constable, whose vertical formats and truth to nature he absorbed while visiting England in 1840.
In the era where Thomas Cole first established the Hudson River School, other artist that is not from the United State such as John Constable, has the same taste in nature and outdoors. John Constable who is from England, created many painting from the surrounding area from his backyard to the countryside. For Cole’s painting, his work of art has been throughout the Hudson River, therefore, his painting consist of vast amount of forest, river, and mountains. He also travels in many locations in America and even done some painting in Europe. Both painter love nature, for this example, landscape will be the primary focus.
At the left-bottom corner of the painting, the viewer is presented with a rugged-orangish cliff and on top of it, two parallel dark green trees extending towards the sky. This section of the painting is mostly shadowed in darkness since the cliff is high, and the light is emanating from the background. A waterfall, seen originating from the far distant mountains, makes its way down into a patch of lime-green pasture, then fuses into a white lake, and finally becomes anew, a chaotic waterfall(rocks interfere its smooth passage), separating the latter cliff with a more distant cliff in the center. At the immediate bottom-center of the foreground appears a flat land which runs from the center and slowly ascends into a cliff as it travels to the right. Green bushes, rough orange rocks, and pine trees are scattered throughout this piece of land. Since this section of the painting is at a lower level as opposed to the left cliff, the light is more evidently being exposed around the edges of the land, rocks, and trees. Although the atmosphere of the landscape is a chilly one, highlights of a warm light make this scene seem to take place around the time of spring.
There were rays of sunlight that were depicted as well. The light in the painting seemed to be focused in the middle, where the stream was. Other areas and parts of the piece were dark or darker than the area in the middle. I think that a trick with shading or lighting was used. Perhaps, it was tenebrism.
The oil on canvas painting by Thomas Cole named The Fountain of Vaucluse is a painting that is best appreciated in person. The painting is something that can’t be seen in just a few minutes to really take in all that it has to offer. The different emphasis on colors, and the use of 2D and 3D visual illustrations can be over-welling to the viewer. As I gazed upon the painting I found my viewpoint of interest change do to the altered landscape illusion that came into focus.
The representation of the new age of exploration, which serves as an allusion to man’s potential, is starkly contrasted with the depiction of Icarus that serves as an allegory for man’s limits, indicating the shift from a euro-centric universe. This painting is an oil canvas landscape of the sun setting on the horizon of the ocean sea, while the ships were sailing through the body of water. The focus on humanism during this period is clearly portrayed by the presence of the plowman, shepherd, and fisherman performing their daily task. Lighter colors are used, which differ from the darker colors that were emphasized during the Dark Age or Medieval period. Shadows can be seen on the ground next to the plowman, showing the increasing artistic methods that begin to be utilized.
...retation of the painting some aspects were surprising to how dark and heavy hearted she could speak, she took an interesting perspective. However in her interpretative poem she found a perspective of the painting that connected with her. As she used every stroke of darkness painted into the canvas an opportunity to have it symbolize this darkness and evil that resides in the world. It told her story and her experience of a starry night. Similarly Van Gogh had used every stroke of light painted into the canvas to be a symbol of beauty, and a symbol of his fascination of the night sky and its illuminating lights. He uses swift movements of his brush to depict a sky that seem to be able to sweep the mind away from the frustrations of this world in to the dreamy night light. A single painting worth a million words tells many stories through every perspective.
It appears to me that pictures have been over-valued; held up by a blind admiration as ideal things, and almost as standards by which nature is to be judged rather than the reverse; and this false estimate has been sanctioned by the extravagant epithets that have been applied to painters, and "the divine," "the inspired," and so forth. Yet in reality, what are the most sublime productions of the pencil but selections of some of the forms of nature, and copies of a few of her evanescent effects, and this is the result, not of inspiration, but of long and patient study, under the instruction of much good sense…
The French 1884 oil on canvas painting The Song of the Lark by Jules-Adolphe Breton draws grasps a viewer’s attention. It draws an observer in by its intense but subtle subject matter and by the luminous sun in the background. Without the incandescent sun and the thoughtful look of the young woman, it would just be a bland earth-toned farm landscape. However, Breton understood what to add to his painting in order to give it drama that would instantly grab an onlooker’s interest.
Claude-Joseph Vernet’s oil on canvas painting titled Mountain Landscape with an Approaching Storm was created in 1775, and it is currently located in the European Art Galleries (18th- 19th Century North) 2nd Floor at the Dallas Museum of Art. It is a large-scale painting with overall dimensions of 64 1/2 x 103 1/4 in. (1 m 63.83 cm x 2 m 62.26 cm) and frame dimensions of 76 1/8 x 115 1/4 x 4 3/4 in. (1 m 93.36 cm x 2 m 92.74 cm x 12.07 cm). Vernet creates this piece by painting elements from nature and using organic shapes in order to create atmospheric effects, weather and different moods. This piece primarily depicts a landscape with a rocky mountainous terrain and villagers scrambling to an upcoming storm.
that includes a village, a tree, mountains, and the night sky. Keep in mind that Van Gogh was in
Examining the formal qualities of Thomas Birch’s painting An American Ship in Distress was very interesting. This paper will analyze and illustrate what I saw in this particular piece of artwork. The paper will also discuss the art elements such as line, shape, color, texture, scale, and composition of the artwork.
The first painting analyzed was North Country Idyll by Arthur Bowen Davis. The focal point was the white naked woman. The white was used to bring her out and focus on the four actual colored males surrounding her. The woman appears to be blowing a kiss. There is use of stumato along with atmospheric perspective. There is excellent use of color for the setting. It is almost a life like painting. This painting has smooth brush strokes. The sailing ship is the focal point because of the bright blue with extravagant large sails. The painting is a dry textured flat paint. The painting is evenly balanced. When I look at this painting, it reminds me of settlers coming to a new world that is be founded by its beauty. It seems as if they swam from the ship.
“Northern Lights” conveys the sense of awe that can be found in nature itself. The lights highlight