August 1890

Theodor Severin Kittelsen created this work, simply titled 'August', as a watercolor drawing. Kittelsen was a Norwegian artist, and this image, like many of his works, evokes the intimate relationship between people and their natural environment. You can see here a woman in what appears to be a domestic setting picking cherries. The focus on seasonal themes reflects a broader cultural interest in the rhythms of nature and the traditional ways of life in Norway. This image may seem straightforward, but it's worth considering the context in which it was made. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Norway was undergoing a period of national romanticism, with artists and writers seeking to define a unique cultural identity. Kittelsen's work, with its emphasis on folklore, landscape, and rural life, contributed to this movement. The role of the historian is to unpack these layers of meaning. Researching the cultural and political context of Kittelsen's time helps us understand the painting not just as a depiction of a woman picking cherries, but as a statement about Norwegian identity and its relationship to the land.