Northland

This is one of my favorite paintings from Tom Thompson, it is currently at the Museum of Fine Arts in Montreal.

The setting is a scene of a forest surrounding a lake, it depicts a virgin forest with no human imprint. Maybe that is why a birch tree is lying amidst the standing forest on the edge of a bed of rocks, knocked down by the force of nature. Through the forest beyond the lake we see the continuity of the forest around it.

The predominance of red, orange and ochre tones used for the leafage covering the rocks and parts of the trees sets the tone of an autumn scenery. There are no symbols or anything suggesting anything else than what it is, a representation of a forest at a specific point in time.

The artist has used both warm and cool colors just like fall, cool and colorful. The mixture of red and orange tones of the autumn leafage that are spread across the bedrock in the forefront guides us into the painting. Inviting us to go deep into the bright birch forest, the artist is using a mixture of beige and pink colors for the trees, making them stand out by their lightness in contrast with the predominant red, orange and ochre tones against the dark blue lake. By using this same mixture of pinkish beige Thompson leads us around the dark lake forcing us to fallow its shore line in a circular movement, there is a faint repetition of the red and orange tones on the far shore of the forest. The intensity of the colors and his choice of palette are reminiscent of the Fauvist period.

There is a great balancing act in the composition and his usage of colors. He reintroduces the blue of the lake in the forefront to enhance the rocks or maybe it could be thought to be the shadows of unseen trees.

The open composition allows for our imagination to see beyond the canvas, you can picture the lake and the forest extending on for a distance on either side of the canvas, or imagine the forest behind you casting shadows on the forefront, you know there is more to the place.

The harshness of the light suggest that the artist chose a direct pointed light source that would explain why the trees are so sharp and seem to reflect the light. Thompson is successful in creating an effective contrast effect with his usage of the dark and intense hues. This effect is even more apparent as you back away from the painting, the trees appear to be white and as you get closer your eyes detect the subtleness of the light pink against the darker shades.

Thompson was born around Claremont, Ontario on August 5^, 1877. Although he started to draw and paint at an early age, he only took to painting seriously in the year 1912. His first trips to the Algonquin Park inspired him and he produced hundreds of small sketches of the region. Many of Thompson’s major paintings began as sketches before expanding into large oil paintings.

His paintings are an acquired taste, as you revisit his work and really pay attention to the details and the color choices, you really get a sense of the artist's passion and you can't help but feel it. Writing about a painting forces us to go beyond the imagery, it helps us notice the subtleness and the technicality used by the artist, questioning certain brush strokes, looking for a clue as to the initial approach. It is bringing us closer to the process while trying to unmasked its secrets.

I would suggest you try this exercise and see if it will change the way you initially looked at a particular painting.