Geiranger 1971

Olivier Debre’s painting ‘Geiranger’ employs the traditional materials of oil paint on canvas to evoke a sense of atmosphere. The handling of the paint, however, is far from traditional. Look closely, and you'll see the material has been built up in thick impasto, lending a sculptural quality to the surface. Patches of purples, greens and browns float on a shimmering blue ground, each daub a physical record of the artist's touch. Debre has coaxed the paint to create something much more than just a picture. The title is taken from a fjord in Norway, so we might imagine that these material qualities are meant to evoke the feeling of being in that place. But really, this painting is about the paint itself. It reminds us that all landscape painting is as much about artifice as it is about capturing nature. When we look at paintings like this, we appreciate how the making process and materials can challenge our understanding of art.