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Asher Brown Durand (artist) American, 1796 - 1886 Forest in the Morning Light, c. 1855 oil on canvas overall: 61.5 x 46.2 cm (24 3/16 x 18 3/16 in.) Gift of Frederick Sturges, Jr. 1978.6.2 On View |
After establishing a successful career as an engraver and portraitist, Durand began specializing in landscapes during the late 1830s. He usually presented the gentler, bucolic aspects of nature rather than the awesome Sturm und Drang that typified Cole's romantic style. His landscapes differ from Cole's, as well, in that they are drawn quite precisely, with a subtle treatment of light and texture that conveys a contemplative or poetic mood. His careful attention to specific details and his meticulous draftsmanship are evident in Forest in the Morning Light, one in a series of "tree portraits" painted by Durand between the mid-1840s and the mid-1870s. In this rendition, one of the most striking pictures in the group, the central figure is the diagonally placed tree in the foreground. Its dark leaves nearly obscure the sky, allowing only patches of sunlight to illuminate the mossy trunks. In the distance, a mountain is visible through a break in the dense foliage.
Durand emphasized the importance of the close, almost scientific, observation of nature. He took numerous excursions in the woods so that he could paint directly from nature, and also published his theories in the influential art magazine, The Crayon.