The Walchensee, New Snow 1922

Lovis Corinth made this landscape with oil on canvas using bold brushstrokes and a dark, rich palette of greens, purples, and whites. I can almost feel the intensity of his gaze, the physicality of the paint as he built up the surface of the canvas. Imagine Corinth standing before this scene, battling the elements, trying to capture the essence of the Walchensee in the face of the new snow! He's wrestling with the paint, maybe frustrated, but determined to leave his mark. Look at how thick the paint is, how each stroke seems to carry its own weight and energy! The light is captured in the dynamism of the marks. The dark purples of the mountains stand out as does the muted green in the foreground. The way Corinth attacked this canvas reminds me a bit of Courbet, but with a touch more angst. They are both part of this conversation among painters, pushing each other forward, always striving to see and feel and express something new. Painting is an ongoing experiment, a way of wrestling with the world, and offering it back to us, transformed.