Carl Larsson, "The Kitchen, From A Home"
I thought it time for a little contrast, something sweet and pretty. But this week's image isn't just a nostalgic mismatch, but a professionally composed arrangement of a scene. Carl Larsson (1853-1919) did this work in 1898 after he had achieved considerable success as an artist. The family had recently moved into a new home where Carl and his wife, Karin designed and decorated the whole of the interior. It was then that Carl created a series of 26 watercolors of his family active inside this new home. Here we have "The Kitchen".
Allowing our eye to flow through the painting we notice a lot of detail, a lot telling us how meals were prepared in this space. Two things catch me and make me smile. First is that the window is open and a nice breeze coming in. Next, look at the cat. Why is he huddled next to the oven/stove? It seems safe to assume the breeze is cooling the room, so is the kitten wanting to keep warm?
One of the things I enjoy about Larsson's paintings is that even though they are often home/family images, he tells the story of his life, a reasonably traditional one in Sweden. Children are seen doing the domestic duties to sustain the home, not simply sweet portraits.
So finally it is the structure of this painting that draws me to it. It is like looking into a semi-circle. The main emphasis is upper center, the window and the girls. A simple white floor does not detract from the neutral woven rug, angled and leading right to them. I like the fact that the girls are busy at work, paying us no mind, as we peek in on them.
Scanning the rest of the painting, I start at the red chair on the left, which cements that entry point. Notice how it is visually connected to the wall, but has no table near, no other seating. Larsson just needed it to provide a visual entry. All of the rest of the items are part of the sweep of the walls and ending on the right with the oven/stove and finally the little white kitten.
This is only the second time this blog has reviewed of Larsson. The first was the painting "Flowers on the Windowsill" done on April 27, 2020.
"The Kitchen, From a Home" is a watercolor dated 1898. It measures 12.5 inches high, 16.9 inches wide. It is part of the permanent collection of the Nationalmuseum, Stockholm, Sweden.
Make Art a part of your life, it's a beautiful thing to do.
Larsson's paintings always give us a warm, comfortable feeling. His family life is important as he often integrates them into his work. All lines in this picture direct us to the girls. Many plates on the draining board, suggest a large family. The objects and decor, are functional, as well as aiding the composition. It is fun to imagine living with these bare essentials. (Well maybe not!) I would guess it's a wood stove, at that period in time; the little door is open for removing ashes. But where is the chimney; is it out of sight? Even the kitten adds to the softness of the whole view. The yellow walls are interesting to me. They almost look like louvers. We are drawn into this very simple, tidy room! Lovely!
ReplyDeleteYES, WHERE IS THE CHIMNEY? The hood above the stove looks like a contemporary vent, but I would think a chimney would be essential. I suppose our only guess is that the stove pipes are behind so the actual chimney is outside? But thanks, Char, always fun to read your thoughts!
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