Activitty #7

The artwork in this exhibition represents the art theme “Art and Nature”. This exhibit features several pieces of art from various painters such as Albert Bierstadt, Frederic Edwin Church, Sanford Robinson Gifford, George Inness, Georgia O’Keefe, and Sergeev Vladimir whom work utilized the theme “Art and Nature”. Each piece is set using nature as its backdrop.

The exhibition will display the artwork of these six artists. Their work will be showcase in chronological order. The first showcase will contain two works of art by Albert Bierstadt (1830-1902); Lake Lucerne and The Rocky Mountains, Lander’s Peak. The second showcase will consist of two paintings by Frederic Edwin Church (1826 – 1900); El Rio de Luz (The River of Light) and Heat of the Andes. The third case will display Sanford Robinson Gifford (1823-1880), A Gorge in the Mountains (Kauterskill Clove). The fourth showcase will feature the work of George Inness (1825-1894); the Autumn Oaks. The fifth showcase is a painting by Georgia O’Keefe (1887-1986); Sky with Flat White Cloud. The final showcase will feature artwork by Sergeev Vladimir to include Mountain Motif and Evening Landscape both created in 2003.

Albert Bierstadt created his oil on canvas paintings The Rocky Mountains, Lander’s Peak in 1863 and Lake Lucerne in 1858. In both paintings, the elements Bierstadt uses are implied lines and atmospheric perspective. Both have mountains which appear to be farther away in the distance. They are blurred and misty shapes. In The Rocky Mountains, Lander's Peak, the color white is used to create the illusion of a waterfall with water cascading down the mountain to create a downward diagonal movement into to the stream below. The implied line of the water create the illusion of there being a stream that surrounds the mountain. In Lake Lucerne painting, there is a dirt road in which the eyes can follows through the trees.

Frederic Edwin Church oil on canvas painting El Rio de Luz (The River of Light) in 1877, he has created a tropical rainforest setting in which the viewer can envision they have been given the opportunity to witness the dawn of creation itself. This is seen by the way Church has used the value of lightening and darkening the color of the sky.

In 1862, Sanford Robinson Gifford created his oil on canvas painting A Gorge in the Mountains (Kauterskill Clove). The interesting element about this painting is Gifford’s use of movement. He used the value of lightening and darkening the sky to create the illusion that the clouds are moving. Another element he uses is implied diagonal lines. This is seen by looking at the pathway created by cows as their wander down to graze in the meadow. The grass where there is movement is bare.

George Inness in 1878 created his oil on canvas painting Autumn Oaks. This painting uses the element of atmospheric perspective where as the hills in the background are meant to appear farther away. When looking at the hills, they are blurred and misty; therefore, creating the appearance of being distance. He also has lightened the sky to create a focus point of being far off. There is also direction and movement by the lines implied when looking at the way the land appears to being moving down from left to right as well as the land background appearing to being going down.

Georgia O’Keefe created her oil on canvas painting the “Sky with Flat White Cloud” in 1962. This paining demonstrates balance where as no one element dominates. This artwork depicts symmetrical balance. If an imaginary line was drawn down the middle, both sides would match up in size, shape, and placement.

Sergeev Vladimir created the paintings “Mountain Motif and Evening Landscape” both oil on canvas in 2003. In Mountain Motif, Vladimir uses primary and secondary colors; blue, red and green to represent the landscape, mountains and sky. He uses the element of intensity by the creating a duller shades of blue to create the illusion of the mountain appearing farther away in the distance. In Evening Landscape, he uses the primary color blue to represent the sky where as tertiary colors are used for the land, i.e. red-orange. To emphasis the hills in the background, Vladimir has made them standout, therefore, making them the focus point.