Golden Autumn, Brittany 

Curator: Golden Autumn, Brittany by Frits Thaulow. What strikes you about this landscape painting, done in oil paints? Editor: I find it to be very calming, with all those earthy browns and golds mirrored in the river. It really captures the feeling of autumn. What stands out to you? Curator: What’s fascinating is how Thaulow uses the oil paint to depict light and texture. Look closely – it's not just about representing a scene, but about the labor and the very *stuff* of paint itself. Note how the brushstrokes, applied *en plein air*, build up the image. It reminds us that landscape painting is never just an unmediated view, it's always made, constructed, bought and sold. Where do you see the labor of production in this painting? Editor: I see it in the way the trees and the reflections in the water aren't perfectly smooth. You can actually see each brushstroke of paint, creating this shimmering, almost dreamlike effect. Did painting outside like this impact what kind of art was affordable at the time? Curator: Precisely. This emphasis on materiality connects directly to the growing market for landscapes. The rise of commercially produced paints, portable easels, and the leisure time of the bourgeoisie were as integral to Impressionism as the individual "genius" of the artist. Without this new availability and new audiences, would we even have this landscape tradition as it unfolded? Editor: That’s interesting! I hadn’t thought about how those things relate to painting outdoors. This makes me think more about how different the art world was for impressionist artists like Thaulow compared to earlier painters. Curator: Exactly. Understanding the materiality and production behind art helps us to ground these paintings within the socio-economic context of their time, beyond just "beauty" or individual expression. Editor: Thank you. I definitely see the painting differently now, having considered how access to materials shaped not only the painting, but painting culture more broadly.