Art is the Solution

Mischief Night Source: Wikiart Happy Halloween! To wrap up my month of spooky paintings and to celebrate the spookiest day of them all, I decided to share the most trick-or-treat-tastic image I could think of: Mischief Night by Jamie Wyeth. This charming painting depicts a pumpkin sitting in a wicker cart on wheels; a bamboo cane leans rakishly out of the back of the cart. The pumpkin’s long stem also trails over the back of the cart, almost like the limbs of a living creature. A Jack-o'-lantern face has been carved into the pumpkin, and the eyes are only just visible over the edge of the cart. This little detail makes the pumpkin feel almost alive. At first glance, it’s perfectly easy to imagine the pumpkin rolling off in its cart, ready to play tricks and cause trouble on Mischief Night (usually the night before Halloween). It’s like a little orange hobgoblin. The black, night sky forms the background of this strange image. Pumpkins are a passion for the Wyeth family, as is Hall...

Witching Hour Source: Chadds Ford Gallery As we continue to celebrate the Halloween season, I want to introduce a rather unsettling piece of art: the Witching Hour by Andrew Wyeth. Wyeth is perhaps one of the greatest painters in American history. His work is iconic, forming an indelible image of American life and culture, especially in the mid-twentieth century. Although Wyeth’s work spanned a multitude of subjects, the Wyeth family had a special affinity for Halloween, thriving off the fantastical imagery associated with the holiday. Eerie themes are common in Wyeth’s work, as well as in his son, Jamie Wyeth’s, paintings. Wyeth once explained his work in the following words: There’s witchcraft and hidden meaning there. Halloween and all that is strangely tied into [my paintings]. For me, the paintings have that eerie feeling of goblins and witches out riding on broomsticks—damp rotting leaves and moisture—smell of make-up—as a child, the smell inside of a pumpkin when a candle is li...

Self-Portrait with Skull Source: National Galleries Scotland There are few twentieth century artists more famous than Andy Warhol. Warhol is famous for his iconic pop art, including Campbell's Soup Cans and The Marilyn Diptych , which features movie star Marilyn Monroe. However, some of his darker pieces are relatively unknown. Self-Portrait with Skull is one of Warhol’s most poignant and unsettling pieces. As the title suggests, the painting depicts the artist with a skull balanced on his shoulder. A red and black background gives the painting a sinister, violent aura. Warhol stares directly at the viewer with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth, an unsettling but also vulnerable expression. The piece was created using one of a series of photos of Warhol posing with a model of a skull. The image was then screen printed and painted. Self-Portrait with Skull reflects Warhol’s fascination with death, a trait that many artists share. Warhol also had a near brush with death in 1968 ...

Late Afternoon, New York, Winter Source: Brooklyn Museum The Impressionist style is typically associated with France and French artists; however, the movement reached far and wide beyond that nation’s borders. In the United States, Childe Hassam was one of the leading figures of the Impressionist movement. Along with his contemporaries, Hassam was responsible for popularizing Impressionism in America. Today, Hassam is known for his paintings of urban and coastal scenes, and his painting Late Afternoon, New York, Winter is the perfect piece of art for these cold, snowy days. As the title suggests, Late Afternoon, New York, Winter depicts a city street in New York, probably in Manhattan. Through a haze of snow, we see a line of carriages struggling up the snowy streets. In the backgrounds, buildings loom out of the snowy sky, half concealed in shadow. A few figures can also be seen, walking down the street. While the scene itself is very simple, Hassam’s Impressionistic style gives it a...

Angels Appearing before the Shepherds Source: Wikimedia Commons Christmas is approaching. In order to celebrate the season, I want to start sharing paintings related to the holiday. Today’s piece is Angels Appearing before the Shepherds by Henry Ossawa Tanner. To my mind, Tanner’s style can be best described as realism with a painterly, almost Romantic style. Tanner primarily focused on scenes of everyday life and religious paintings; his work was known and renowned around the world. Significantly, he was also one of the first African-American painters to be celebrated internationally. The subject of the painting is taken from a passage from the Gospel of Luke, which describes how angels appeared to a group of shepherds to announce the birth of the Christ child: And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel sai...

The Open Window Source: Wikimedia Commons There are some themes that are universal in art. Over the centuries, artists have returned again and again to the motif of a figure gazing out a window. This theme is especially common in Western art, where it often implies anticipation, curiosity, and other outgoing, external characteristics or emotions. The Open Window is an example of one such painting. The piece was created by Elizabeth Okie Paxton. Today, Okie Paxton is best known as a painter of the Boston school, a group of Bostonain painters who focused on portraying interior scenes or landscapes in a painterly, almost impressionistic style. Although it was unusual for women in general to become painters, it was relatively common in Boston, where there were many artists willing to take on female students. The style of the Boston school was eminently suitable for a female artist, as women were usually constrained to painting domestic scenes. Although Okie Paxton focused on these interior...

The Thankful Poor Source: Wikimedia Commons Happy Thanksgiving! This year, many Americans are celebrating the holiday in unusual ways, unable to participate in large gatherings. However, that doesn’t change the fact that it is an important day of gratitude for many of us, and Henry Ossawa Tanner’s masterpiece The Thankful Poor is the quintessential image of gratitude in American culture. To my mind, Tanner’s style can be best described as realism with a painterly, almost Romantic style. Tanner primarily focused on scenes of everyday life and religious paintings; his work was known and renowned around the world. Significantly, he was also one of the first African-American painters to be celebrated internationally. The Thankful Poor depicts a man and a boy, perhaps a father and son, sitting down to a table that holds several empty plates. Although they don’t have much, the two express their gratitude through prayer. The piece captures the hardships faced by everyday, working Americans—...

Faraway Source: Arthur There are few artists more quintessentially American than Andrew Wyeth. His art captures twentieth century American life with an undefinable yet vital energy. His paintings typically feature neutral color schemes and deceptively simple compositional choices; however they pack a big emotional punch. Faraway is a good example of this aspect of his work. The piece depicts a young boy—Wyeth’s son Jamie, who would later become an artist himself—sitting in a field, gazing at something the viewer cannot see. He wears a black coat and a fur cap; he grips his knees as though trying to keep warm. The field itself is full of dry, yellowed grass, which might represent autumn or winter. The sense of cold and barren sterility of the field adds a melancholic air to the piece. The meaning of the title Faraway is a little unclear; although, it is clear that it holds the secret to understanding this piece. The title could refer to Jamie’s state of mind, referencing his wistful, ...

Pioneers of the West Source: Smithsonian American Art Museum During the Great Depression, the American government created the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to stimulate the economy and employee out-of-work Americans. As part of this mission, the WPA hired artists and writers to produce works that celebrated American culture and history. Helen Lundeberg was one such artist. Lundeberg was one of the co-founders of the Post-Surrealism movement. Post-Surrealism was the Americanized response to Surrealism. It can be best described as a more socially conscious version of Surrealism. While traditional Surrealism tends to be introspective, Post-Surrealism looks outward. It focuses on creating a sense of wonder in the viewer and takes an interest in science. In some ways, it could be considered an aspirational style. Pioneers of the West is one of the paintings Lundeberg produced while working for the WPA. It depicts a group of pioneers with oxen and covered wagons setting off on a journ...

If you’re living in the US, you know that today is the day of the 2020 presidential election. I’m perfectly aware that everyone is going to be watching the results come in, and, therefore, won’t have much time for art. So, today, I’m just going to share a few paintings that celebrate American elections. Enjoy! Undecided Voter by Norman Rockwell - You’re probably very familiar with the work of Norman Rockwell. More than any artist, Rockwell crafted the visual culture of American life in the twentieth century. His drawings, illustrations, and paintings are what most of us think of as classic Americana. His painting entitled The Undecided Voter appeared on the cover of The Saturday Evening Post just before the 1944 presidential election. Here, we see a man in a voting booth who is busily considering if he should support Franklin Delano Roosevelt or Thomas E. Dewey. Undecided Voter Source: The New Yorker Election Day 1844 by Edward Lamson Henry - This piece, which I discovered in the colle...

A few months ago, I wrote a blog post entitled “ Five Female Artists You Should Know .” I enjoyed writing the post, but it didn’t give me nearly enough space to talk about all the female artists I wanted to mention. So, today, I’m going to give you five more! The world of art is vast and varied. However, in almost every culture around the world, female artists have been undervalued or dismissed at some point in history. That being said, female artists have persisted in creating amazing art throughout the ages, and we’re going to continue discussing that today. Lavinia Fontana - Lavinia Fontana was one of great Italian mannerists of the sixteenth century and also happens to be one of the first Western, female artists with a well-documented career (there, of course, were many female artists before the sixteenth century, but their work was often anonymous or misattributed). She was (and is) quite famous in her home city of Bologna and was much in demand as a portrait artist as well as a ...

Pumpkinhead Self Portrait Source: Wiki Art Today, I want to celebrate Halloween by talking about a very fun painting by Jamie Wyeth: Pumpkinhead Self Portrait . Jamie Wyeth is a member of the famous Wyeth family, and is the son and grandson respectively of celebrated painters Andrew Wyeth and N.C. Wyeth. Although he’s probably not as well known as his relatives, he’s certainly a famous and talented painter in his own right. I was fortunate enough to see an exhibition of art by the Wyeth family at the Brandywine Conservancy several years ago, and one of my favorite pieces in the collection was Wyeth’s Pumpkinhead Self Portrait . Aside from being very entertaining, this painting challenges the tradition of self portraits in Western art. I read this piece as an expression of formalist ideas, a literary theory that divorces the artist/author and their intentions from their art. In this painting, Wyeth removes himself from his own self portrait, a somewhat self deprecating gesture...

The Stroll Source: Smithsonian American Art Museum When you think of October and Halloween, what do you picture? In The Stroll —a deceptively simple painting executed by American artist Gertrude Abercrombie—we see a tall woman dressed completely in black walking along a path lit by moonlight with a black cat by her side. Where she is going and why she is taking a stroll in the middle of the night is unclear. However, if The Stroll doesn’t bring to mind the subtle creepy and spookiness of October, I don’t know what will. In my imagination, the woman in The Stroll is a witch of immense power, walking a lonely and difficult path that brings inner strength and profound magic. But, that’s probably my literary imagination running away with me. In actuality, it is probably more sensible to interpret this wonderfully witchy painting as a metaphor for life and all the troubles it brings. The woman in the painting walks along with her back straight and her head held high, the picture of streng...

A Storm Source: MET Museum There are few twentieth century artists more famous than Georgia O'Keeffe, especially in America. Today, O'Keeffe is best-known for her paintings of flowers, which she portrays in exquisite, close-up detail. These flowers were part of O'Keeffe’s journey with self-expression through abstraction. O'Keeffe was one of the first American artists to experiment with abstraction, which she first encountered while studying at the Art Students League in New York. Throughout the early years of her career, O'Keeffe worked to develop a unique visual language that allowed her to express her ideas and point of view. While abstraction usually functions by using lines and shapes to delve into the subconscious mind or the spiritual realm, O'Keeffe approached abstraction through exploration of the natural world, which, in turn, allowed her to express thoughts. While O'Keeffe was profoundly inspired by the landscape of New Mexico—where she executed ma...

Double Portrait of the Artist in Time Source: Smithsonian American Art Museum I’ve written a lot about Surrealism on this blog, and, while I definitely enjoy Surrealist art, I have to say that recently I’ve been finding Post-Surrealism just as interesting. According to my research , Post-Surrealism was the Americanized response to Surrealism. It can be best described as a more socially conscious version of Surrealism. While traditional Surrealism tends to be introspective, Post-Surrealism looks outward. It focuses on creating a sense of wonder in the viewer and takes an interest in science. In some ways, it could be considered an aspirational style. One of the founders of this movement was Helen Lundeberg, an American artist who did most of her work in California. Her self-portrait, which is entitled Double Portrait of the Artist in Time , depicts Lundeberg at different stages of her life. In the foreground, we see Lundeberg as a toddler. According to my research , her white dress and ...

I Saw Three Cities Source: Princeton University Art Museum I have written about many Surrealist artists on this blog, but few of them have been American. While the Surrealist movement is undoubtedly associated with places like Mexico, France, and Spain, there was also a flourishing Surrealist movement in the United States, populated by painters like Kay Sage. Sage is probably one of the most well-known painters of her time. She achieved great success during her lifetime and was recognized in both American and European artistic circles, and she was even included in the famous Exhibition by 31 Women. Like most Surrealists, Sage sought to explore the hidden world of the unconscious through her art. At its core, Surrealism revolves around a desire to reveal things that are concealed. Sage enters this realm in I Saw Three Cities . The piece is enigmatic, offering few clues to the identity or significance of the titular three cities. It depicts a grey sky and a windswept, beige landscape...

In 1971, a rather famous art historian named Linda Nochlin published an essay entitled "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?" (which was rather famous in and of itself). In this piece, Nochlin explains how institutional and cultural forces prevented women from engaging in the artistic world for most of Western history. Despite the valid points that Nochlin makes, the premise of her essay actually isn’t true. Since "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?" was published, numerous women of the modern era have been recognized for their artistic genius, while at the same time art historians have rediscovered the work of many female painters who were forgotten by history. However, it is still true that the work of female artists tends to be undervalued and understudied in the art world. So, today, I’d like to introduce you to five brilliant women who definitely deserve the name Great Artists. Sofonisba Anguissola - Sofonisba Anguissola is probably the greate...

Tribute to the American Working People Source: Smithsonian American Art Museum In honor of Labor Day, today I want to talk about a painting that celebrates the triumphs of America’s working people. Fittingly, that painting is entitled Tribute to the American Working People . For this piece, Sharrer took inspiration from Renaissance altarpieces, borrowing the five panel form from the traditional Italian style. However, instead of religious figures, Sharrer decided to center ordinary, working people in her monumental painting. In each panel of the painting, Sharrer depicts a scene of ordinary life. A series of factory workers dominate the central panel, which would usually house an image of a saint in a religious altarpiece. Sharrer probably drew inspiration for these figures from her own experience as a shipyard welder during World War II. While the central panel focuses on work, the side panels capture recreation and domestic life. In these four panels, we see a fair, a school, ...

The Child's Bath Source: Wikimedia Commons Everyone living in the Western world has seen a Mary Cassatt painting at some point. Her work, which is dominated by domestic scenes that typically feature women and children, is extremely popular and Cassatt prints can often be found decorating homes and public spaces. Her success is even more impressive when you consider how difficult it was for female artists to find success in the male dominated art world of the nineteenth century. Cassatt is known for her expressive Impressionist style, which conveys movement and energy while celebrating the nuance and complexity of domestic life. The Child's Bath is one of her most famous paintings and is one of the most popular treasures of the Art Institute of Chicago. As the title suggests, the piece depicts a woman—presumably the mother—bathing a little girl in a basin of water. Both figures look downward, studying the little girl’s feet as they splash in the water. The painting has a ve...

Birthday Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art It’s hard to define Surrealist art because each and every Surrealist artist had an incredibly unique style. Yet, even so, American Surrealist Dorothea Tanning had an approach to art that was singular, even by Surrealist standards. Like many artists of her cohort, Tanning lived an incredible life. She lived to the age of 101, living through both World Wars and a number of other world-changing events. Tanning continued to create art until the end of her life, producing paintings, sculptures, and writings, including poetry. Her self-portrait entitled Birthday is one of her most famous paintings, and it is often cited as the first example of Tanning’s Surrealist style. The painting made Tanning’s work famous after it was chosen by painter Max Ernst to be included in an exhibition of work by female painters. The piece shows Tanning in a strange costume that seems to be growing out of her body. A strange, furry animal stands at her feet as she...