John Fabian Carlson (1874-1945), Winter Willows, c.1937, oil on canvas, 25 x 30 inches. Brigham Young University Museum of Art.
Winter is on its way and today we highlight a frigid scene from the MOA collection. This unpretentious view of a snow-laden patch of field is typical of the many landscapes John Fabian Carlson painted in the countryside of Woodstock, New York. Winter scenes allowed the painter to explore the decorative qualities of the tracery of unfoliated branches as well as the numerous 'sky-holes' found on barren trees. Carlson believed each tree had its own expressive personality and used them often as a strong pictorial element.