A Bush Idyll 1896

Curator: Looking at George Washington Lambert's "A Bush Idyll" from 1896, painted with oil on canvas, one immediately notices the hazy atmosphere and the relaxed postures of the goats. It evokes a very peaceful, almost dreamlike mood. Editor: The composition itself is quite striking. The arrangement of the goats, the light filtering through the trees in the background, even the loose brushstrokes, all direct the eye, forming a rhythm between form and background. Did Lambert perhaps wish to demonstrate the correlation between human activity and an Australian pastoral environment? Curator: Very possibly, if we consider that late 19th century Australian art often engaged with developing a unique national identity in relation to land and its agricultural and social possibilities. The representation of this young female tending to her goats within a deliberately "wild" or at least, untouched, bush scene hints at themes such as Arcadia, family, self-sufficiency, which were relevant socio-historical aspects for the artist to explore. Editor: True, but I also find it captivating for its rendering of texture; see how the softness of the goats' hair is rendered next to the coarse, almost fragmented painting of the roughhewn fence. Curator: Absolutely, there is a deliberate juxtaposition. And it also speaks volumes on a socio-economic level; this is a representation of a modest pastoral lifestyle far removed from that enjoyed by affluent Europeans. Editor: It strikes me how Lambert uses muted, desaturated colours to generate pictorial cohesion, in addition to emphasizing shape. But it would have served other goals in terms of reception within the art establishment, I think? Curator: Indeed, this artistic technique positions Lambert strategically between conventional European painting practices of the late 19th century and a distinctly modern approach, possibly guaranteeing the artist’s popularity, by acknowledging and yet challenging certain traditions. Editor: The artist succeeds in creating a contemplative, nostalgic feeling. An invitation to slow down. Curator: Agreed, it is more than a pretty scene: it is a visual poem.