The Artist’s Summer Villa in Haikko from the Sea 1905

Albert Edelfelt made this painting, The Artist’s Summer Villa in Haikko from the Sea, at some point, we don't know exactly when! You can feel him feeling the scene: the luscious green of the grass, the darker shadows of the trees, the soft white of the villa in the distance. I imagine him outdoors, maybe balancing his easel on uneven ground, squinting in the sun. Look at that white gash of paint in the lower left. It's so gestural, so alive. It could be water, or light, or just pure paint. It reminds me of other painters, like Bonnard or Vuillard, who found beauty in the everyday. What was Edelfelt thinking as he made it? Was he happy, content, or a bit melancholy, knowing that summer, like all things, must end? These feelings aren't fixed; they shift with the light, our moods, and time.