Art| Pictures of the Month | November 2007
Picture of the Month
November 2007
Ripe Cornfield, Evening
[1896] by Arthur Illies
This reflective and symbolic print is an appropriate Picture of the Month as the seasons are so visibly changing in the world beyond the gallery.
Arthur Illies was a late nineteenth-century German printmaker working in Hamburg, who invented his own personal etching techniques to help him express the glories of nature. Illies had become frustrated by conventional colour etching, and developed his own methods, in which deep impressions were made in the etching plate by acid biting into it. Colour would then be applied by hand, allowing for layers of great intensity to be built up. The variety of colour throughout this image is immense, as gold, sienna and turquoise bring the mass of corn to life.
The result is impressive: ears of corn dusted with moonlight, swaying in a field at dusk remind us of the harvest and closing of the year, as autumn settles in. However, this print, acquired for the Barber Institute in 2000, demonstrates the harvest not only in a literal sense, but also enters into the realm of Symbolism. It reflects on the year’s cycle, as one phase ends and another begins. The symmetry of the scene is a traditional characteristic of late nineteenth-century Symbolist style, where the countryside setting is used to imply deeper, spiritual significance. Symbolism came about as a reaction to Impressionism’s desire to represent the sensory appearance of the external world, and harked back to some of the realist principles of the early nineteenth century.
The depiction of the crescent moon recalls the lunar fascination of the German Romantic artists. Suspended in the sky, it symbolises the sickle, an agricultural cutting tool, suggesting the imminent harvest and new beginnings. The time of day, with the resonating glow of moonlight at dusk, acts as an ever-present reminder of cycles of night and day and even of life and death.
Below the moon appears a mesh of fine lines that denotes the wheat. Traditionally, ears of corn have Eucharistic associations. This harmonious image thus leads further into Pantheism, a belief that God is present within all things.
Sarah Brown, Gallery Assistant
A 15-minute gallery talk focusing on this picture and exhibition will be held in the Education Gallery on Thursday 8 November at 1.10pm and 1.40pm.
| What is your favourite work of art in the Barber Institute galleries? Drop us a line at info@barber.org.uk and let us know, and we could feature your choice in a future Picture of the Month. |