Marked by an expression of unconscious thoughts and dreams, the Surrealist movement began a new wave of artists that flooded the United States in the 1930s. This new realm of thought inspired artists to liberate their minds from reality and to look within to find meaning. The American artist Vance Kirkland found relief in this style as he sought to find a needed release from realism. His painting “Clouds, Mountains, and a Lake” embody this idea of surrealism as he shows realist abstraction through geometric shapes, opalescent colors, and a dream-like state of reality.
Born in 1904, Kirkland’s painting career ranged from realism to abstraction to dot paintings as it spanned over a 52-year period. In the beginning, he worked with landscapes and watercolor, but later discovered a new method of mixing watercolor with oil (Museum 1). This process caused his paintings to have a textured, almost alienated look that gave him the title “Father of Modern Colorado Painting.” His passion for art exuded to his students as he oversaw and taught at the University of Denver as the first Director of the art school. This led to the creation of the Kirkland Art School, which catered to thousands of students and now stands as a historical museum (Museum 1). His insistence for modern art in the newly founded school made it a beacon for hopeful painters as they wished to become a part of this new art movement. While he is well known for his more abstract paintings during the latter part of his career, his early paintings helped to start a new wave of surrealism.
In the beginning of his schooling, Kirkland failed an art class at the Cleveland Art School because he chose to work with colors that were not meant to compliment or define each other. However, the radical experimentation of his paintings, especially when he shifted from realism to surrealism, caused little commotion when he moved to the Southwest. While modernism did not have a respectable reputation in the East, Kirkland’s work excited Denver as they welcomed his art with open arms. Conservative works were the norm until he introduced the modernist thought of the art process being the center rather than the subject matter (Cook 1). The rhythmic shapes of his art attracted national audiences for his surrealist qualities, even though he chose to disregard Freud and his idea of unconscious thought as the reason for his paintings (Cook 2). The prestige he gained as the founding director and curator at the University of Denver propelled his career and made him acclaimed as starting a new age of art, and his individual style reflects in all of his paintings.
Adorned with translucent clouds and serene colors, his painting “Clouds, Mountains, and a Lake” is torn between the Designed Realist and Surrealist movement. His career can be divided into five distinct movements, but each change was slow and unhurried, which reflects in many of his paintings. In this particular painting, done in 1940, he leans towards surrealism as he plays with the colors and the shapes of the mountains. Geometrically arranged to be curved and sensual, the mountains rise and fall around a pristine lake that makes that leads to its dream-like state. However, the crystal clear lake and the trees add certain truths, because they are the reality that keeps the painting from going to complete abstraction. Without the water and the trees, the mountains would become senseless lines and curves with little or no meaning.
Rationally depicted but with simplified shapes and colors, Kirkland’s painting shows his steps towards abstraction and modern thought. The wispy clouds cover the mountains and hide the sun, forcing the dark and dreary mood upon the painting, while a single dark mountain looms in the center, forcing attention on its lack of color and depth. Looking at the painting, the dark hues of blue and green are hypnotizing as the eyes are drawn up and down in a circle that never ends. These darker colors bring out a saddened tone and almost seem mournful, as if the lake was lost in either Kirkland’s mind or lost in reality. However, the clarity of the water makes the painting seem more like a reflection of a memory as the lake echoes the mountain peaks. This painting, however abstract, could represent what lies under the lake if the viewer could look beyond reality and into a new realm of modernist thought. Known for climbing the mountains and viewing the wonders of nature, Kirkland’s paintings often mirrored his view of the natural world and the thoughts that came from it.
The painting is simple and unique, but the subject matter needs to be studied to fully understood. Aesthetically, the painting pleases the viewer as the curved lines of the mountains and the simplified mountains forms are soft and sensual; however, its cultural meaning remains insignificant if the viewer is unaware of the radical movements involved. If the viewer cannot appreciate the courage to present non-realistic forms to the art world, the painting is simply a mass of shapes molded together to create a landscape. Without its history, it can never be more than pleasing to the eyes of the viewers. However, if it is viewed in a museum, with works of art drawn from the same movement, it is certainly more compelling and thought-provoking. In the pages of a book, its grandeur is lost and the attention is drawn to the dogs playing poker on the next page. In its true form, the painting is a masterpiece of the art world.
As a symbol of modernism in the Southwest, Kirkland’s career is still felt today as artists come and pay tribute to his work in the Kirkland Museum in Denver. His career liberated art and led to the acceptance of non-conservative works in the West. This painting, done early in his career, reflects his early transition from realism to abstraction. This liberation inspired the students of his art school to free themselves and to find what it means to be a truly inspired artist. Overall, his works began a new wave of art that is still being felt today as it educates those under his influence.
Bibliography
Cook, David. "Vance Kirkland | Facebook." Welcome to Facebook. 11 Mar. 2010. Web. 26 Oct.
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"Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Ed. Wikipedia
Encyclopedia. 21 Oct. 2010. Web. 26 Oct. 2010.
"Vance Kirkland." Kirkland Museum - Promoting Colorado's Pre-eminent Artist. Ed. Kirkland
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