Aspen spinny. A gray day. 1884

Curator: Here we have Isaac Levitan’s 1884 painting, "Aspen spinny. A gray day," currently housed in the Belarusian National Museum of Fine Arts. Editor: Well, the first thing that strikes me is how muted everything is. It’s incredibly somber, almost like the trees themselves are holding their breath, waiting for the storm to break. Curator: It certainly evokes a powerful emotional response. Aspen trees have often been used symbolically in art and literature. Their trembling leaves can represent vulnerability, resilience, or even the presence of spirits, don’t you think? Editor: Yes, that is all interesting, but notice the visible brushstrokes, how the impasto adds a texture to the foliage and trunks. Levitan clearly uses oil paint to its maximum expressive potential. I mean, the materials practically *are* the subject in how much they’re emphasized. Curator: Absolutely, and in Levitan's time, the Impressionists and Romantics were captivated by the sublime and beautiful possibilities of the natural world, though each approached this from their perspective on individual freedom and spirituality. One often seeks an elevated or ideal meaning in art. Editor: What interests me more, though, is to imagine the scene of its production. I wonder if the artist mixed his own paint and what the socio-economic status was of his suppliers? What would he have consumed after a day spent among the Aspens? Curator: You're pulling the everyday and even mundane into a work that pulls on centuries of artistic engagement with forests. Consider its place in that lineage. The trees stretch up toward a barely visible sky. They're a connection between earth and something…more. It can easily represent reaching out to connect with nature, a reminder of mortality. Editor: I don't know, for me the symbolic element falls flat if we can't really explore the impact the availability of materials and time had on this work. Curator: And there we find ourselves on opposite branches of the tree of knowledge once again. I will have to consider that. Editor: Perhaps it could illuminate something to explore this with our listeners? Food for thought!