article.wn.com
Claude Monet, the leader of the Impressionist movement, painted many scenes in nature, using time as his main inspiration. It is very evident through all of Monet’s works that he enjoyed contrasting the slow processes of geological time (i.e. the eroding of a cliff over time) with the near instantaneous effect of something as light or the sun. Monet spent most of the late 19th century entrenched in the the effects of light and its relation with time. Robert Knott, a professor at Wake Forest University, argues in his scholarly review of Monet’s work entitled “Monet’s Cathedrals: A Point in Time” that Monet demonstrates the contrast of time scales and the effect light has on scenes in nature no better than in his paintings of Rouen Cathedrals completed in the 1890’s. Monet’s switch to the painting of these Cathedrals rather than a focus on more natural devices proves to be one of the most significant turning points in his career.
To paint a picture for you (pun intended), Monet’s impressions of the Rouen Cathedrals demonstrate a certain mastery of the effects of light on a canvas. Monet’s fascination with the transcendental power and mystery of light is captured in the very essence of these Gothic buildings. Monet uses the aging texture of the eroding brick and contrasts it with the youth and liveliness that the sun’s light brings forth, illustrating dual instances in time, as if a photograph was taken of a scene at two different points in time. In many of these paintings, Monet used a centered source of light (Monet’s exact definition of Impressionism) to dissolve the structure of the church, making it submit to the dominate power at hand; light. Monet’s use of light created a clash and the appearance of time without time. In other words, the light brought forth life and vibrancy to the scene, while still capturing the essence of one particular moment in time, as if time were frozen. Picture a sunrise. Monet’s portrait of it would show all the hues; purple, orange, yellow, red, but the presence and power of the sun (the source of light) would implicate one, single moment in time.
faculty.evansville.edu
The particular painting above “Haystack at Sunset Near Giverny” illustrates just this. As you can see, Monet uses many different colors in capturing the essence of the sun, but this does not make the image to active. One could easily take this as an instance in time. This is but one of the many paintings that Monet has done that illustrate the liveliness and effectiveness of light in a scene of nature. In other paintings, one can see the prevalence of light even with the absence of vibrant colors. For instance, in “View of Rouen” Monet does not use much color, especially any in the lively sense, and still, there is a sense of life in an all but dead scene (see below).
freeartprints.co.uk
As a leader of the Impressionist movement, Monet pioneered the use of light and time to illustrate the power and emotion present in all of his scenes. This use of external forces, coupled with the age, texture, and stagnation of the Rouen Cathedrals provides for a perfect illustration of Monet’s commitment to his ideals, inspirations, and tonalities. Monet’s use of light captures the essence and embodiment of time like no other. Monet is truly the master of Impressionism and its devices.
Citations
Knott, R. Monet’s Cathedrals: A Point in Time. Southeastern College Art Conference Review v. 12 no. 3 (1993) p. 171-80; http://vnweb.hwwilsonweb.com/hww/results/external_link_maincontentframe.jhtml?_DARGS=/hww/results/results_common.jhtml.43
No comments:
Post a Comment