Trees in the Sun 1920 - 1921

Lovis Corinth made this etching, Trees in the Sun, and you can see the bare trees made with these quick, darting strokes of dark ink. It’s as if the artist was trying to capture a fleeting moment, right? It's like he's in a hurry to get it down, before the light changes. You can see the sun shining, a little halo peeking through the branches. I imagine Corinth standing there, squinting in the sunlight, trying to capture the way the light filters through the trees, making everything glow and shimmer. There’s something about the sparseness of the etching that makes it so powerful, though, right? Each line feels so deliberate and precise, and the way he uses the negative space to suggest form and depth. It is what other painters were doing at the time. It shows how artists are always talking to each other, across time and space, riffing off each other’s ideas, pushing the boundaries of what painting can do. And how painting isn't just about depicting the world around us, but about trying to make sense of it, to find meaning and beauty in the everyday.