Sommerlandskab, Baldersbrønde 1900

L.A. Ring painted this oil on canvas landscape of Baldersbrønde, Denmark, in 1900. It shows a field with a dirt road running through it, leading to a distant village with a windmill. Painted at the turn of the century, it's difficult to look at a rural scene like this one and not consider the massive social changes that were occurring as Denmark and other European countries industrialized. Note how the artist positions the viewer on a path, not quite in nature, but not quite in town. Perhaps Ring is commenting on the transitional nature of Danish life at this time. He certainly engages with a tradition of landscape painting that was promoted by the Danish Royal Academy. To understand the painting more fully, one could research the Danish art world and the Royal Academy, and study official government records about urbanization. We can interpret art as a window into the social and institutional contexts of its time.