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Landscape painting is a way to see the world from the artist’s eyes. It’s one of the oldest ways to capture the forever-changing face of the planet and cherish it for a very long time to come. The world has witnessed many artists who left their own versions of nature behind on a piece of canvas. While not all of them could leave a mark, some of them managed to teleport viewers to entirely different lands with the magic they created on their canvas.
Today we will look at all such works of landscape art that have enraptured people for centuries. They have mesmerized viewers, inspired artists, and created an irreplaceable place for themselves in the history of art. Here are the three masterpieces that we at TERAVARNA are in love with.
1. The Hunters in the Snow
The famous landscape painting was created by Pieter Bruegel the Elder in 1565. It is an oil-on-wood artwork and is part of a six-painting series by the artist. However, at present only 5 paintings in the series remain. Created during the early Renaissance, they represent the rural activities throughout the year — also known as Labor of the Month. Even though Labor of the Month traditionally represented twelve months of the year, the artist divided his series into six.
One close look at the painting can give you a sense of the narrative that the artist wanted to convey. It depicts a scene of a snowy winter where three worn-out hunters are returning home with their dogs. Only one dead fox visible among the three hunters clearly indicates the unsuccessful hunt. The paucity of the hunt has been depicted as a common struggle during the winter season. This finely detailed work is one of the best-known landscape paintings by Brugel. It also inspired a famous short story by the same title.
2. The Starry Night
Every discussion about landscape painting is incomplete without mentioning this masterpiece by the legend Vincent Van Gogh. The artist created it during his stay at a mental asylum under the influence of heavy treatment drugs and hallucinations. While it is said that Van Gogh loved creating this painting, he considered it a complete failure upon completion.
The Starry Night is an oil painting on canvas and depicts a fictitious village, a result of Van Gogh’s inner turmoil. Even though he created many artworks taking inspiration from the view outside his window, this is said to be one of his best works. The foreground depicts the shadow of cypress trees which are associated with death in many cultures. The white star, left to the center is Venus whereas the moon can be seen towards the further right of the composition. The contrast of yellow and blue adds further depth, grandiosity, and a sense of eeriness to the frame.
The painting shows his fascination with astronomy with his placement of celestial bodies. The eleven stars could also be a reference to the tale of Joseph from the Bible’s Old Testament. The church depicted in the center is believed to be a memory of his childhood in the Netherlands. The spirals throughout the sky are said to be inspired by Japanese art, especially the Great Wave by Hokusai.
3. The Magpie
The Magpie is one of the 140 snowscape paintings created by Claude Monet and was completed somewhere around 1869. This landscape painting is also the largest winter painting produced by Monet. The painting became a benchmark of the impressionist movement for Monet’s depiction of colored shadows.
The depiction challenges the traditional practice of painting shadows in black. Instead, the impressionists made use of colored shadows to represent the changing light and shadows in a more natural way and how we actually see them in nature. The realistic depiction made this famous landscape painting one of the best artworks from Claude Monet.
The painting depicts a lonely black Magpie resting on a gate created with a wattle fence. The surrounding area is covered with freshly fallen snow shining under the touch of warm sun rays. Monet shows a clever use of the complement between blue and yellow in this painting. He used yellow to create an effect of sunlight casting bluish-violet shadows on the sunkissed snow. Keeping technicalities aside, the painting takes viewers to a serene winter afternoon and is simply relaxing to look at.
Landscape Paintings are the Doorway to a Faraway Land
Paintings have always been one of the best creative escapes for mankind since ages. The different types of landscape paintings hold the power to evoke different emotions in the viewers. They are relaxing, and rejuvenating and always manage to bring you a step closer to nature.
With this small list, we have hopefully brought you a step closer to exploring the vivid world of landscape art. If you believe us, it is full of fascinating stories told through different periods in time that you will never forget. Take your time to explore the exquisite genre and take yourself on a journey across the world through these different canvases of artistry.