Forest Scene c. 1909 - 1925

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner made this painting of figures in a forest with oil on canvas. Look at those broad strokes of color! Kirchner’s bold application makes me think he was painting fast, maybe outside, trying to capture a fleeting moment. I imagine him squinting in the dappled light, really going for it, and not worrying about the details. He’s getting down the feeling of being surrounded by the dense, vibrant green of the forest. The figures are almost secondary to this. Take the tree trunk for example; the way he renders it with strokes of grey and white, it’s like a living thing, almost pulsating with energy! I see a conversation happening here, between Kirchner and the Fauves, like Matisse, who were also using color in expressive ways. Painting is such a generous activity of exchange, across time and between artists. It keeps evolving, shifting, and changing.