ArtExpertOnLine

  Andrew Wyeth's work can be controversial.  Some consider him a complete realist, others a romantic, and often, a man creating a statement of continuity in an changing world.  Like him or hate him, today's image certainly evokes feelings from all of us.    Here we have dead crows, bright sun we do not see, a spare landscape and portrayed in an almost monochromatic arrangement.   Titled, The Woodshed, it is a tempera work done in 1945, measuring 33" x 56".   I have not been able to determine the owners of the work, but my reference book credits Mr. & Mrs. C. Porter Schutt, so it is possible it is still in their private collection.    I find the date interesting. World War II is just ending.  I am not sure we can connect the two however, it is remarkable - two dead crows, two defeated nations.   Wyeth has a talent for striking compositions, this being a perfect example.  Often, close up,  corners appear as abstract arrangements, but as the viewer pulls back, a

   In giving title to this landscape, California artist, Wayne Thiebaud not only provides the location, but also the time of day.  Knowing that Thiebaud is a California artist provides the last clue to guessing the probably location.  Smartly, The San Francisco Museum Of Modern Art purchased this painting for its permanent collection in 1986, a year after it was completed.  Sunset Streets is an oil on canvas measuring 48" x 35".      Wayne Thiebaud was born in 1920 and resides in California. He is one of several artists creating a distinct California aesthetic using heavy pigment and exaggerated color.   He is best known for his commonplace objects, figures, and landscapes. of which this is a perfect example.    The composition of this work is amazing.  Right down the center, at a slight tilt is this blue-black stripe, K shape, beginning with a heavy base and capped with a large triangle of sorts.  The painting is a geometry lover's dream, completely dedicated to ever

  Summer Night is one of my favorite American paintings, and to see the original we must go to Paris, for it is part of the permanent collection of the Musie d'Orsay.  It was painted in 1890 by Winslow Homer (1836-) and is an oil on canvas measuring 30" x 40".   This beautiful image is very similar to the Mark Rothko (see below).  Does that seem strange? The artist's objectives are about the same.  Here two women are dancing on a pier by the sea. Their figures are illuminated by light from behind them, probably a house, but the light does not extend far enough to catch others silhouetted to the lower right.  It is a beautiful night by the sea for the moon is casting its long glow on the waves and water.  If we enlarge the painting, we will notice a small red dot on the right horizon indicating a lighthouse in the distance.   Homer has created an intimate scene, which includes several anonymous people.  Impossible to delve into this work without feeling the mist, t

  In the late nineteenth century, Paris was the center of the Art world, and  most noted was the Impressionist group led by Claude Monet.  However as the century was drawing to its close, a sizable group of independent artists were making their mark and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec was one of the best.    Here we have his painting, At the Moulin Rouge.  It is an oil on canvas painted between 1892 and 1895.  It is a large work, 48" x 55" and is part of the permanent collection of the Art Institute of Chicago.    Toulouse-Lautrec has an interesting life which I encourage you to research.  He was not interested in working with natural light but rather interiors illuminated with candle and gas fixtures. His work portrayed friends and characters dwelling in the nightlife of Paris, and this painting is a perfect example.  All of the main figures in the painting are known, just like Renoir's Luncheon, and here, Toulouse-Lautrec has included himself.  In the upper center of the

     Today we have one of Mark Rothko's greatest paintings from the height of his career.  It is titled, White Center.    It was painting in 1950 and measures 81" x 56". In 2007 it was sold by Sothebys to the royal family of Qatar for 72.84 million US dollars, a record for this type of contemporary work.     Always, a work of Art must stand on its own merits, no matter who the personality is that conceived and created it, or what conditions existed at the time it was made.  However, for this particular artist and work, I decided to investigate his life and thoughts to confirm my ideas were in keeping with his intent.    The primary problem with viewing White Center is seeing the painting in this small reproduced state.  This painting is huge and Rothko wanted his viewer to get up close and personal with it.  For Rothko, Art is not to see a window into the world, but rather, to stimulate an emotional experience .     Here we have bands or rectangles of changing colo