Fall Landscape with Figure on a Path
Gilbert Gaul
Artwork
Van Buren, Tennessee
1855-1919
Oil on canvas
30 x 44 inches
Circa 1881
Label:
Although a Northerner by birth, Gilbert Gaul had strong ties to the South. In 1881, he inherited a farm in rural Van Buren County, Tennessee, from an uncle. The bequest carried a stipulation, however, which required Gaul to reside there for a minimum of four years. The gracious rolling hills of the state’s midsection lent themselves to pastoral interpretation.
Despite the fact that Gaul never traveled to France, this scene is reminiscent of Barbizon aesthetics, which emphasized the simple pleasures of country life. This idea is reinforced by the figures under the tree and the wading cows. The nostalgic mood of the painting is enlivened by impressionistic brushwork.
As Published In:
Scenic Impressions: Southern Interpretations from the Johnson Collection, 2015
As Exhibited In:
Tennessee Harvest, Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN, January 31–May 4, 2025
Scenic Impressions: Southern Interpretations from the Johnson Collection, Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, TN, November 1, 2015–January 3, 2016, Morris Museum of Art, Augusta, GA, January 16–April 10, 2016, Knoxville Museum of Art, Knoxville, TN, January 16–April 10, 2016, McKissick Museum, Columbia, SC, May 19–August 5, 2017, Telfair Museums, Savannah, GA, October 13, 2017–March 25, 2018, Wofford College, Spartanburg, SC, August 28–December 13, 2018
Helen M. Turner: The Woman’s Point of View, Dixon Gallery and Gardens, Memphis, TN, June 27, 2010–May 8, 2011
Carolina Collects, Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia, SC, June 27–August 17, 2008
Mundane and Subime: Wash Day Images from the Johnson Collection, Spartanburg Art Museum, Spartanburg, SC, September 29–December 30, 2007
Other Artworks by This Artist
Van Buren County, Tennessee
Gilbert Gaul