Museum Paper

Summer Dusk (Solitude), 1920

Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt

Sunday, I tried going to four museums, but sadly on three were open. Personally, the Kimbell was my least favorite museum out of the three that I visited. There were very few paintings that  liked there. Next, I went to the Modern Museum of Art, and that one was my absolute favorite as soon as I stepped in. A majority of the paintings and sculptures in there were amazing. Next, I went to the Fort Worth Community Arts Center, but since it was Sunday, it was closed. Last, I went to the Amon Carter Museum. When I first walked in, I was overwhelmed by the number of country themed paintings I saw. But, as I continued to explore the museum, I found that there were more and more paintings that I liked.

The painting shown above is displayed at the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth. If this painting hadn't been lined up on a wall with multiple other painting, then I most likely would have missed it. But not because the talent displayed in this painting didn't catch my attention, but because if you see it in the museum, you'll see that it's a very small painting in comparison to others. Once I did spot the painting, I was immediately drawn to its dark colors and realistic picture. In the painting, you see what appear to be tall, snowy mountains in the background, with a sad looking man riding a sad looking donkey, with the setting sun in the background of it all. The whole painting, to me personally, evokes a sad, gloomy feeling. After analyzing the painting, I think it's supposed to represent a journey or a struggle of some sort. Like I said before, a tired man appears to be trekking across a mountain on a donkey. I think the artist was trying to depict a rough time that he went through in his life. I also think that because of the colors the artist used in this painting. All the colors in this painting are dark and dull. There are multiple shades of dark greys and dark blues. The only sliver of a bright color there is, is the small yellow-orange setting sun in the background. Dusk and solitude are definitely represented in this painting, so I do think the artist picked a very appropriate title for this artwork. In this case, the date the painting was created does make a difference. Now-a-days, you don't see very many people riding donkeys for any purpose, and you see people traveling through mountains much, much less. So, the date, 1920, helps the viewer understand why a man is traveling on a donkey, through the mountains. A few elements of art displayed in this painting are shape, form, texture, and color. If you were able to look closely at the painting, you would see the light brushstrokes that are barely visible, creating a slightly rough texture. Shape was used to create the sun and mountains, and form was used to accurately depict the man, the donkey, and the multiple trees. A few principles of design present in this painting are emphasis and variety, Personally, I think there is emphasis on the sad man riding the donkey. While there is an entire background, the man and his donkey were placed front and center, and I was immediately drawn to that first. I think other people should see this work because a lot of them would be able to connect to the hardships portrayed in this paintings if they've ever been through rough time in life. I think this painting is definitely worth remembering.

After doing research on this painting and the artist, I found out that the artist was originally from Sweden. I also found out that what I predicted was wrong. The painting wasn't meant to represent a hardship the artist went through at some point in his life. This painting was just meant to portray his experience of Sweden's dark winter days.