Observable Fact vs Functional Speculation Gustave Courbet Fringe of the Forest c 1856
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Realist landscape as Gustave Courbet (1819-77) himself would define it should be a search for genuine representation of that which surrounds us verisimilitude above all else . Realists, in true appreciation of representing what is real, allow their own expression to become secondhand to their invested interest in the world which surrounds them. Courbet's work Fringe of the Forest makes use of such passion in observation. However, in relation to an artist so concerned with representing the truth above all else, it would seem then that analyzing his works in a manner which relied on functional, subjective meaning rather than factual observation would be misguided. This, surprisingly enough, is exactly what seems to permeate from some of the literature surrounding Courbet. Fringe of the Forest is a work which allows one to realize that attributing underlying meaning based on the functional and subjective, such as gender quality, to a selection of realist work is exactly contrary to the work itself and the artist's intent. Moreover, in studying such a work one comes to the realization that an understanding based upon palpable fact is not only more favorable, but gives one the tools to reason why it should be so.
Formally Fringe of the Forest first strikes its viewer as a dark emotive landscape. The work exudes a very strong sense of weight within its extremely dense forest floor and foliage. Rich vigorous brush strokes of brown, green, and black create a sense that though the work may have been quickly executed it is an exacting representation of Courbet's original vision of the scene...