This winter landscape is noteworthy as one of the few paintings that John Marin is known to have executed during his student years at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, prior to his departure for Paris in 1905. While it recalls the work of Pennsylvania impressionists like Edward Willis Redfield, the emphasis on tone and mood and the intimate scale of this subdued, monochromatic winter scene is also indebted to the aestheticism of
Overview
Entry
This winter landscape is particularly noteworthy because it is one of the very few paintings that John Marin is known to have executed prior to his departure for Paris in 1905. It was painted during the time he studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia with
The emphasis on tone and mood and the intimate scale of this subdued winter scene is indebted to the aestheticism of
Robert Torchia
July 24, 2024
Inscription
across top stretcher bar reverse: (Landscape) c. 1900-1905 SR#1[the "1" crossed out] 00.1 NBM 2/21/84 / 9 x 11 3/4
Provenance
The artist [1870-1953]; his estate; by inheritance to his son, John C. Marin, Jr. [1914-1988], Cape Split, Maine; gift 1986 to NGA.
Technical Summary
The unlined, fine, plain-weave fabric support remains mounted on its original stretcher. The tacking margins are unevenly cut, and the margin along the top edge tapers away at the left corner. The corners are torn, and the attachment of the fabric to the stretcher is insecure. The artist applied a dark-gray toning layer over the commercially prepared white ground. Examination of the ground with the stereomicroscope shows fine wrinkling of the surface throughout, indicating a drying defect in the upper dark-gray layer. The numerous pieces of grit and wood embedded in the paint surface indicate that this painting was executed outdoors. The paint was applied wet into wet with opaque pigment; low impasto is present throughout. Marin used a stick to scrape through the wet paint when forming some of the branches. The unvarnished surface was obscured by a thick layer of grime that was removed in a 2002 treatment.
Michael Swicklik
July 24, 2024
Bibliography
- 1970
- Reich, Sheldon. John Marin: A Stylistic Analysis and Catalogue Raisonné. Tucson, 1970: no. 00.1 (as Landscape).
- 1992
- American Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1992: 230, repro.
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