Country Doctor by Horace Pippin (Interpretation and Analysis)

-
Country Doctor by Horace Pippin
Country Doctor
Source: Museum of Fine Arts Boston
I missed National Doctors’ Day a few days ago, but, in this time of national crisis, I think every day should be National Doctors’ Day. To celebrate, I want to share this painting—entitled Country Doctor—which I first saw on the Museum of Fine Arts Boston’s Instagram page (I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, there’s nothing better than following art museums on Instagram).

As the title suggests, the painting depicts a doctor, walking with a horse and a covered cart through a snowy landscape. He is presumably on his way to see a patient, battling the snow as he trudges through the night. The painting highlights his dedication to his work and draws attention to courageous persistence in the face of adversity.

Although I believe this is an important message, the part of this painting that originally caught my attention is the snow (or perhaps it’s sleet; it’s tough to tell). It’s unusual to see weather in progress in art; I think this is largely because it’s difficult to capture the constant motion of wind and water in static images. If you’ve ever tried to take a photo of rain falling, you’ll know what I mean. Besides which, weather events have the potential to draw attention away from the central subject of the painting.

This is the case in the Country Doctor. The doctor himself is almost invisible behind a curtain of snow and sleet. However, in this piece, I think this distraction adds to, rather than detracts from, the painting. The falling snow is striking, yet, more importantly, it underlines the doctor’s struggle and his commitment to his patients. It turns a rather unremarkable painting into something eye catching and interesting. As the Museum of Fine Arts Boston notes, “In Country Doctor...Pippin was able to achieve astonishing effects with a limited palette and an intuitive sense of design.”

Disclaimer: I’m not an art historian or an expert on this topic. The above is my opinion, based on my interpretation of my foreknowledge of art and history. If I’ve done any additional research, I’ll note it above.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Le Chat Aux Poissons Rouges by Henri Matisse (Interpretation and Analysis)

-
Image
Le Chat Aux Poissons Rouges Source: Pinterest French artist Henri Matisse is rather famous for his paintings of goldfish. In fact, one of his most famous paintings, entitled Goldfish , depicts several of the aforementioned fish swimming in a bowl. Matisse is one of the most famous artists of the twentieth century. His work is closely associated with the Fauvist movement and is generally characterized by great energy and rich, intense colors. Based on my research , Matisse began painting goldfish after he traveled to North Africa. In Morocco, Matisse observed locals watching goldfish swim in their bowls as they sunk into a meditative state. The fish subsequently became a symbol for this sense of tranquility, coming to represent an idyllic version of the world only accessible through joyous day-dreams. These calming fish are prominent in this painting, which is entitled Le Chat Aux Poissons Rouges (which translates to The Cat With Red Fishes ). However, the serene energy of the fish
Read more

Mural La Plena by Rafael Tufiño (Interpretation and Analysis)

-
Image
Mural la Plena Source: Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico Today I want to chat about a monumental piece of art that I recently had the pleasure of seeing at the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico. As the name suggests, Mural La Plena is a massive mural, fifteen by thirty feet in size, that was created by Puerto Rican artist Rafael Tufiño to commemorate la plena, a wildly popular genre of music that was born in the city of Ponce around 1900. The mural, which might appear abstract or incomprehensible to a viewer unfamiliar with the subject matter, illustrates the lyrics of popular plena songs. For example, the blue-green figure that dominates the upper half of the mural represents the hurricane from the plena “Temporal,” which mourns the destruction caused by a storm. Plena, as a genre, tells stories. According to my research , the lyrics come from current events, re-telling the stories that affected the lives of the people of Ponce. It began as a way for people of low socio-economic sta
Read more

Five Puerto Rican Artists You Should Know

-
Image
The island of Puerto Rico has a long and vibrant artistic tradition. Western, Indigenous, and African cultures have all left their mark on Puerto Rican art, creating a colorful and unique visual legacy. While Puerto Rican artists have demonstrated their excellence throughout the years— from the creators of the captivating Taino petroglyphs to the sophisticated and subtle works of the Modernist painters—Puerto Rican art has received little attention from art historians and the wider art world. Here are five underappreciated Puerto Rican artists that you should know: 1. José Campeche José Campeche is often known as the first Puerto Rican painter in the Western history of fine arts. He was primarily known for his religious paintings and his portraits of elite Puerto Ricans, and today his work is recognized as some of the finest examples of Rococo art produced in the Americas. Campeche’s personal story is also inspiring. The son of a slave who had purchased his own freedom, Campech
Read more