The Clearing in the Woods 1913

Clarence Gagnon made this landscape, The Clearing in the Woods, with oils to create a picture of what I reckon must be the Canadian wilderness. You can tell that he works from a specific place. The violet shadows and light-filled spaces seem to emerge from a single impulse, a process of attending to the scene as a whole. The paint is applied in such a way that the textures of the snow are built up with thick impasto, creating a tactile surface. Notice the way he's used varying shades of blue and purple to suggest the depths of the woods, this is a super clever and sophisticated way to add depth. It's all very intuitive and feels both immediate and timeless. There's a certain kinship here to the landscapes of someone like Edvard Munch, but also a clarity that feels unique to Gagnon. I love the ambiguity, and how the painting holds space for so many different feelings, maybe you can feel them too!