Painting the land has been an important subject of art since antiquity. The idea of a landscape painting has evolved to match each society’s purpose for art. In Ancient Greece, it was common for men of stature and wealth to have painted frescos of nature along with various mythological and religious symbols. However, it was during the renaissance that the landscape became a more prominent topic for artists. During this time, it became increasingly popular among Dutch artists to paint landscapes and windmills. As history continued, landscape painting was pushed further down the hierarchy of art that truly exhibited one’s ability to create. This idea began to be challenged in the painting of the Impressionists; however, the reemergence of the importance of the landscape came to full fruition during the Post-impressionists.
During the era of Post-Impressionism, many artists revisited the very construct of the landscape. For different artists, it took on different meanings, and therefore, it stopped being a simple exhibition of talent and became a window into the artistic purpose. Most artists generally sought to give deeper levels of meaning to the forms they painted. Some artists used different techniques to scientifically affect how the viewer saw the painting, while others sought to add personal meaning to the varying subjects within the paintings. Many of these artists used landscapes to do this because through their portrayal of the land they had the opportunity to paint something both entirely subjective yet grounded in the natural world.
Paul Cézanne, Trees and Houses Near the Jas de Bouffan, 1885–86, Oil on canvas, 26 3/4 x 36 1/4 in. (67.9 x 92.1 cm), 1975.1.160
In this painting, Cézanne uses specific brushstroke techniques to give the viewer an incomprehensive understanding of the landscape that urges the viewer to contemplate what they are seeing. Cézanne takes the landscape and draws the viewer to analyze both how the landscape appears and what it means to the artist. The prominence of the trees in the forefront of the painting that hides the houses from plain sight cause the viewer to wonder what is so significant about the property in the background. This painting, like many other Post-Impressionist paintings, is not meant to simply showcase the artist’s ability to paint a landscape.
Vincent Van Gogh, Wheat Field with Cypresses, 1889, Oil on canvas, 28 7/8 × 36 3/4 in. (73.2 × 93.4 cm), 1993.132
Van Gogh is commonly known for his ability to place immense meaning on the subjects of his art. This landscape is no different. In it, Van Gogh used contrast in color to emphasize the brightness he felt when painting this plein air, or in nature. He also uses brushstroke to draw the viewer into the painting as they get lost in the swirls of cloud and sky. The presence of a lone cypress tree, a common theme in the art of Van Gogh, causes the viewer to realize that the light mood of the wheat field cannot always be the reality. There is more to life than rolling fields and billowing clouds, but Van Gogh hopes that the viewer (originally meant for his mother and sister) can get caught up in the beauty of nature.
Georges Seurat, Gray Weather, Grande Jatte, ca. 1886–88, Oil on canvas, 27 3/4 x 34 in. (70.5 x 86.4 cm), 2002.62.3
George Seurat’s technique of Divisionism (also called Pointillism) set his style of painting apart from past landscapes. He uses his scientific understanding of color to entertain the visual senses. This landscape style not only showcases Seurat’s ability to paint a landscape, but it also displays his personal interest in the power of color and its ability to shape a painting. This is especially evident if the viewer has the opportunity to get closer to the tree and see the myriad of different colors Seurat uses to paint the tree trunk and the leaves of the trees.
Paul Gauguin, Tahitian Landscape, 1892, Oil on canvas, 25 3/8 x 18 5/8 in. (64.5 x 47.3 cm), 39.182
This landscape of Tahiti is full of bright colors which, along with the heaviness of the air conveyed through deep color, displays the artist’s perception of the culture around him, especially the Western view of primitivism. At the time, many people saw the natives of non-western societies as both inferior and more in tune with nature. Seurat conveys this by painting the people into the landscape through the use of similar colors. This, along with the focal dominance of the horse, helps the viewer understand what Seurat sees as valuable to the peoples and culture in Tahiti, a place he sees as a primitive culture.
Pierre Bonnard, From the Balcony, 1909, Oil on canvas, 49 x 39 1/8 in. (124.5 x 99.4 cm), 66.65.1, © 2019 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Bonnard’s landscape is of his family estate during summer. This was a place he cared about deeply, which may have influenced his decision to include some of his nieces and nephews frolicking on the grass. The color palette and the form of the subjects display his personal care for the sight and the children he included. Pierre Bonnard was part of a group of painters called the Les Nabis("prophets" or "seers"), a group that did not focus on the three-dimensionality of its subjects. While this is evident in the lack of clarity regarding the depth of the land and the horizon, it does not diminish the impact of Bonnard’s evident love for the scene.
Henri Rousseau, Seine and Eiffel tower in the sunset, 1910, oil on canvas, private collection, wikiart.org
The style of this painting is initially perceived as very different from other Post-Impressionist paintings. This is mainly due to the fact the artist, Henri Rousseau, was not formally trained at any point in his career. However, this does not mean that in any way his purpose for painting this view of the Eiffel Tower at sunset. Rousseau uses color in this painting to create a mood for the city right at the setting of the sun. The unnaturalistic proportions in the painting convey that while he has not been formally taught; he paints because it is personal to him. By doing this, he makes something like a landscape become an elusive impression of what he sees.
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