Magnoliatakken 1887 - 1947

Frans Everbag made this print of magnolias, called Magnoliatakken, and its all about the magic of seeing. Look how he builds up tone and texture, with soft hazy colours, to describe the light as it falls over the petals. You can see the physical stuff of the print up close, the way it sits on the surface, the grain and the little imperfections. There’s something so delicate about the way he describes the flowers, all in soft greys and whites, with a hint of yellow in the stamens. Each bloom seems to catch the light in its own way, and you can almost feel the softness of the petals. The way one of the lower flowers droops down feels so natural and unforced. It reminds me of the work of Odilon Redon, who was working around the same time, always trying to find new ways to represent the familiar, to suggest rather than describe, and to leave space for the viewer to bring their own associations. Art, like the world, is never really finished.