Landscape near Champery 1913

Ferdinand Hodler created this landscape painting near Champery with oil on canvas. Hodler was a leading Swiss artist who explored themes of national identity. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the rise of Alpine tourism. As urban populations sought refuge in nature, the Swiss landscape became a symbol of purity and escape. Hodler's paintings participated in this cultural phenomenon, but they also pushed against the grain of idealized representations. Hodler's landscapes often emphasized the monumental and sublime aspects of the mountains, reflecting a sense of national pride and perhaps anxieties about Switzerland's place in a rapidly changing world. To fully understand Hodler’s motivations, we would need to delve into his personal writings, exhibition catalogs, and the critical reception of his work during his lifetime, all to better understand the complex relationship between art, identity, and social change.