More Open Windows

Peter Schjeldahl, writing in the May 2 edition of The New Yorker magazine discusses an exhibition of paintings whose primary motif is the open window. Most of the paintings in the show date from the early and middle of the 19th century, which makes the Scandinavian paintings in my recent post (March 18, 2011) derivatives of this trend. Mr. Schejldahl reports that the open window motif quickly became a cliche, but a review of the later paintings in the Varnedoe volume (and my post) reveal a much more deeply felt attention to the details of light and shadow, Nordic culture, and the landscape, and interior space. But see for yourself; see Mr. Schejldahl's audio slide show and read his article.

AUDIO SLIDE SHOW

Romantic Windows

May 2, 2011

Peter Schjeldahl writes this week about the show “Rooms with a View: The Open Window in the 19th Century,” at the Metropolitan Museum, which highlights Caspar David Friedrich and other Romantic artists “who became smitten, in the period during and after the Napoleonic Wars, with views of interior spaces that center on windows.”

Read more http://www.newyorker.com/online/multimedia/2011/05/02/110502_audioslideshow_romantic#ixzz1MAK9pwl9