Greenwood Lake 1875

Curator: Jasper Francis Cropsey’s “Greenwood Lake,” painted in 1875, is just a jewel, isn't it? Look at that vastness! Editor: Yes, and the overwhelming feeling that comes from viewing "Greenwood Lake" comes not just from that vista but from the fact that we know Cropsey worked "en plein air" – we know his encounter with this site was direct and physical, making it more than a beautiful illusion. Curator: I think he’s capturing a fleeting moment of grace. There's a golden haze softening everything... making you almost feel the crispness of autumn and smell that earthy scent of fading foliage. It’s almost a personal, sensory recollection! Editor: Well, he's certainly invested in the *look* of natural processes – and it’s important to consider his method! Think about the material realities: grinding pigments, stretching the canvas, then transporting all of that, and his easel, into nature and fighting the light... all before capturing this idealized vista. It’s romantic for sure, but what labour! Curator: Precisely! And his skill in rendering atmospheric perspective - layering of blues and golds- to hint at distance is beautiful to consider, and gives so much peace when observed. There are some people by the water. They're dwarfed, of course. I wonder what they see? Editor: I see consumption here. I mean, landscape paintings became popular as industrialization proceeded because city dwellers increasingly had money to consume both images and experience of untouched nature, to soothe the anxieties of modern existence. The paintings *become* the object of solace for this newly leisured and urban population, don't they? Curator: Perhaps so, yet there is a profound emotional truth. He conveys, at least to me, the sense of wonder, but tinged with melancholy as summer departs into autumn’s arms. Editor: To me, it’s a document of cultural yearning wrapped in a gorgeous package, illustrating an ongoing relationship with the materials that allow that beauty to be recorded, consumed, and enjoyed. Curator: True indeed! But I prefer to bask in his visual music before the light fades from the day and, alas, this exhibition! Editor: I can certainly appreciate the light, and the layers upon layers of social implications hidden in that lovely painted haze!