Art & Critique » Takeyce Walter

Takeyce Walter: Winter Landscapes

elijah — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 21:14:41 +0000

These winter landscapes, similarly to the river paintings, are marked with calm that seems to emanate from inner, deeper resources. If the latter encouraged to envision underwater currents, the former appear to conceal sources of quiet energy under the ground — or under the snow, as if in hibernation. I think that this impalpable illusion is the result of the effortless transformation of color harmony into clear, breathing atmosphere. There are few colors here: white, pale brown, pale blue and some shades of black; the general low to neutral temperature of the palette correlates with the season the colors depict. The white snow binds the blues and the browns as an intermediary that simultaneously plays the part of the dominant color. The overall harmony and economy create that special mood of stillness, which lies in wait for the viewers, to pass on some of that hidden energy.

A secondary, but important motif is that of sleep. The arrangement of grass islands, randomly or neatly interspersed among the snow, reminds of bed linen patterns, while the white associates with down that fills pillows and the light brown of the grass links directly to straw that fills mattresses. The cold winter weather is known to paralyze and put to sleep a casual wanderer. Could it be that said hidden resources contain some darker, hypnotic powers? Could a conflict seethe under the sheet of snow? Possibly so — but the surfaces do not reveal anything; all we see is the weak light reflected off the ice crust. However, if there are indeed some primitive forgotten instincts that allow people to communicate with nature on a different level, the artist captured their essence in these landscapes.

Composition-wise, these works again resemble the river pieces. Due to the low viewing angle the ground level fill most of the canvas, which in turn allows to develop long, anticipatory vistas. Human presence is hinted at by the accurately arranged growth — but the snow seems to aim to cancel any sign of the domestic, and human touch remains limited to mentioned instincts. Finally, I think that these pieces, and Takeyce Walter’s work in general are particularly effective at probing into people’s most spontaneous, initial responses to nature and seasonal changes. As such, the landscapes are difficult to write about — they do not render themselves to words easily — because they work on other levels. But that speaks only to their advantage.

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Takeyce Walter: Birches and Maples

elijah — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 20:58:33 +0000

The decorative association in these bright, warm paintings is so strong that I think about white dresses bedecked with orange spots (or flowers). Incidentally, these series depict autumn, when nature changes attires — to something more austere — and the artist captures the lyricism of this languorous process. The contrast of the white and the orange is so striking as to almost scream from the canvas; it doesn’t, however — it sings instead. To ensure consonance, the artist provides space for additional colors, such as the green of the leaves and grass, the blue of the river and the brown of the mountains. The latter two produce a background harmony that supports the melody at the front.

In almost all of the pieces in this series, the trees are cut by the frame, and the audience sees only the middle section. While somewhat annoying at first, this feature prompts the viewers to plunge into the experience of gazing and enjoying nature — by denying them any roots or crowns to fix their eyes on. The narrow field of vision simulates walking in an unknown environment, stepping without knowing where one’s feet would land; it cultivates uncertainty and even fear. We are put inside the groves in first person, as if able to touch the trunks just by extending a hand. The rhythm of the birches, curved or straight, encourages to imagine oneself as another tree. The aggregate effect is of a powerful bond with nature.

Though one of the close-up birches usually provides a focal point, the compositions lack a clear center. This is a strange quality in a landscape where the subjects fill most of the foreground. It is as if the artist paints close scenes while having the panoramic remote background in mind; she does not want the audience to focus on a particular point in the foreground — as much as we may be tempted to — but rather conceive the painting as a wide landscape. To my mind, this is not an easy exercise (especially considering the notion of the intimate experience described earlier), but a highly rewarding one.

These are two-layered works that uphold compositional and color balance by making juxtapositions. Thus, the birches’ finesse mellows the mountains’ solemnity and the maple hot orange spots offset the cool tones in the back. The visual transition from one layer to another is natural because there is no center that would draw all the attention and interfere. Indeed, at some point it may appear that the configuration of the maple leaves clusters repeats the contours of the hills. Overall, the artist created a series of deep landscapes that succeed in resonating with a range of human emotions.

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Takeyce Walter: River Landscapes

elijah — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 22:05:22 +0000

Takeyce Walter is an American artist who publishes her work online on her website and blog. She paints mostly landscapes, working on a variety of themes: rural and farming environment, seasonal changes and water surfaces (sea, rivers, lakes) under varying conditions. The paintings of rivers are the subject of today’s review.

It is difficult to write about these works — it is much easier to experience them. The scenes encourage listening rather than speaking; immobility instead of motion. The duplicate compositional conception of a water plane copying the sky and the trees leads to cogitations on the role of the artist. The mirroring water surface transfers “what it sees” onto its liquid canvas, producing the most believable illusion of three dimensionality. Isn’t it what the artist also strives to do? What is the purpose of a landscape artist — to copy nature as it is, or offer individual interpretations, such as the impressionists did? These paintings do not provide any clear answers; their merit lies in restating the questions.

The artificial vista of light disorientates and appears to play a little trick on the audience. I made an experiment: I viewed the piece from a standing position and from a sitting position. In the former case, the overall sensation was of strange instability, one approximately akin to being in water (standing or swimming) — which generally requires the sharpening of the senses (at least for a landlubber), prompted by the alien environment. The picture was so vivid that I felt a mild rush of adrenaline. Add to this the allusion to the biblical miracle of the parting sea, and you have all the components of a drama. Yet the paintings are evidently the exact opposite — peaceful and quiet.

In the latter case, however, the situation was reverse. Everything seemed to have gone “back to normal:” total stability and calm ruled, as if I was sitting inside a boat, safe and protected. The apparent reason for these changes is the viewing angle: the paintings are suited for observing from a sitting position. But the availability of an alternative adds a touch of provocation, or perhaps even a taunt at our expense. These shifts in perception remind me of anamorphosis, only here it is the viewer who has to undergo a change of perspective, and an emotional one at that.

Technically, the glassy surface carries the burden of land and sky gracefully and without excess ripples. In some parts, the artist makes her brush strokes more discernible where the mirrored blue adjoins the dark green (and black), amplifying the irony of the two bordering each other. Water reflections appear to be one the artist’s specialties, but nowhere does she flaunt her control of the theme; rather, she lets nature speak for itself — and makes the audience listen.