Since vacation is on
everyone’s mind now that summer is in full swing, let’s just look at works of
art that spout vacation, special day off, or festival. And, yes, this can be an
art historical exercise too!
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Thomas Cole (1801–1848, United States), The Picnic, 1846, oil on canvas, 122 x 183 cm (48" x 72") © Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, NY. (BMA-48) |
Thomas Cole—yes he’s an
ancestor of mine—is my favorite of the Hudson
River School artists because he brings the “romantic” into the style of Romantic Realism. The Picnic is a perfect example
of nostalgia for the American wilderness that was rapidly disappearing at the
time (see my post from July 15th for
more about nostalgia in art). My favorite part of this painting is the
clouds, which remind me of Dutch Baroque
landscape painting in which clouds always figure importantly. Is this the
classical reference to thought?
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Salomon van Ruysdael (1600/1603–1670, Netherlands), Castle on a River, 1644. Oil on wood, 39.3 x 60.5 cm. © Cleveland Museum of Art. (CL-64) |
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William Laughlead (dates unknown, United States), Poster stamp for vacation land in Minnesota, early 1900s. Color lithograph on adhesive paper. © Winterthur Museum, Winterthur, DE. (WIN-162) |
The phenomenon of “poster
stamps” raged in the early 1900s. They were stuck on packages being
shipped, advertising mailings, brochures, and pamphlets. It is such an
interesting part of design history, especially since they reflected the
artistic styles of the day. This one reflects an Art
Nouveau aesthetic.
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Torii Kiyonaga (1752–1815, Japan), Children at the Chrysanthemum Festival, 1793–1798. Woodcut, 38 x 26 cm (15" x 10 1/4"). © Philadelphia Museum of Art. (PMA-1743) |
The chrysanthemum is the national flower of Japan. It
figures prominently in the debate in Japan about the merits of spring and
autumn gardens. The Chrysanthemum Festival in the fall elicits beautiful
arrangements of the flower, but also encourages contemplation on the
possibility of snow falling on the fading blossoms. This print shows children preparing (in a
manner) for the festival.
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Marion Post Wolcott (1910–1990, United States), Winter Tourists, 1940. Gelatin silver print, 21.1 x 26.9 cm (8 5/16" x 10 9/16"). Photo © The Museum of Modern Art, New York. (MOMA-P3249) |
Like many artists who matured during the Great Depression
(1929–1940), Marion Post Wolcott was
interested in the human experience. This image of a couple on a beach in
Massachusetts is an example of the frank lack of money to travel except to
nearby locales. Even in winter it’s nice to get away!
I leave you with Robert Gwathmey’s
depiction of a tourist on the outer banks of North Carolina. Gwathmey was a
social realist from Virginia who was keenly interested in daily life,
particularly of African Americans. Here he
represents an uber-tanned tourist with his catch for the day.
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