Alders in the Rhön 1920

Agnes Langenbeck-Zachariae made this watercolour, Alders in the Rhön, layering colours and shapes to create a feeling of being in the landscape. The paint here is thinly applied; translucent washes build up the forms of the trees and hills. The colour palette is muted, mainly blues and greens, which gives the work a dreamlike feeling. Look closely at the way Langenbeck-Zachariae renders the trees, in blocky, angular strokes. Each brushstroke feels intuitive, capturing the essence of the landscape. The negative space between the trees is as important as the trees themselves. The painting is not so much a representation of a place as a meditation on form and colour. There’s a connection to artists like Cezanne, who also worked with colour and form to create a feeling of space and depth. In the end, art is always in conversation with itself, shifting, changing, and opening up new ways of seeing the world.