Landscape from Koli 1928

Eero Järnefelt painted this Landscape from Koli with oils on canvas. What strikes me is the way the landscape is built up from visible brushstrokes. Järnefelt isn't trying to trick us into thinking this is a photo, it's paint, plain and simple. The texture here is gorgeous, especially on those foreground rocks. You can see how he's layered different colours, blues and browns, to create a sense of depth and form. It's like he's sculpting with the paint. And then there's that gnarly tree on the left, this old tree seems to be hanging on for dear life, its branches reaching out like fingers. I think about Van Gogh, another artist who found such beauty and expressiveness in nature. Art is just one big conversation. It's not about answers but the questions.