Summer Idyll 1931

Pekka Halonen painted Summer Idyll in 1931 with what looks like thin layers of oil on canvas, and the marks are just so gentle and soft! There's such a stillness to this work, even though it depicts figures in a landscape. You can see the way the cool blues and greens of the water and foliage contrast with the warmer tones of the figures' skin, creating this lovely sense of light and shadow. I really get drawn to that upturned boat, and notice how Halonen uses these delicate strokes to describe its form and texture. It's almost as if he's inviting us to step into the scene, to join these figures on their summer adventure. Looking at this I'm reminded of how Pierre Bonnard would use paint to create these intimate, domestic scenes, blurring the line between observation and memory. Both artists share this interest in capturing these fleeting moments of beauty and reverie, and in celebrating the simple joys of life.