Sharpen Your Powers of Looking at Paintings
Try this single tip to get more from works of art
The last time I was inside an art gallery, I found myself stood in front of this Monet painting, Springtime, made in 1886. It depicts an orchard of fruit trees in flower, with a pair of women sat in the dappled shade.
The pleasure of Monet’s work comes, I think, from his anti-claustrophobic approach. He gave light and space their full sovereignty across the canvas. His paintings are rarely earnest, hardly ever self-righteous or didactic. As such, they don’t tend to collect dust like opinions or morals do. They have the appeal of exactly what they represent: fresh air, trees heavy with foliage or blossom, water alive with ripples, and people caught in the moment.
I looked at Springtime and noticed how the subject matter reaches each edge of the painting, suggesting too that the landscape continues beyond the frame.
It was only when I moved on to another painting that I realised something about the Monet painting that I’d never really understood before.
My perception was shifting — and an unexpected and more acute way of seeing was emerging as a result…
