Solitude

"We must reserve a little back-shop, all our own, entirely free, wherein to establish our true liberty and principal retreat and solitude." - Michel de Montaigne

"The worst solitude is to be destitute of sincere friendship." - Francis Bacon

"No man will ever unfold the capacities of his own intellect who does not at least checker his life with solitude." - Thomas de Quincey

 As these images demonstrate, how the viewer interprets solitude depends on whether it is chosen or not.  Artists begin with their choice of a vantage point, with implications flowing from there.  But, as viewers, we can question our interpretations.  Kersting's young woman weaving a garland may look happy to us because the leaves are green and we see her basket beside her, but, then, what do we make of Clarence White's Autumn Allegro?  The coloration is somber and pale as the sun recedes but White's title suggests emotions not readily visible is the static image.  The girl appears to be wearing a costume so she may have paused for a moment's introspection before joining some festivity. 

 How to interpret  the pair of images Songe et realite (Thought And Reality)?  Morbelli invites us to look beyond what we can see by 'peeling' back a corner of each picture.  It may be that these two old people are enjoying a restful moment in the warmth of the sun, or the grey hues in the pigments may suggest a more wintery view of their situation. Morbelli exhibited a series of paintings at the International Exposition of 1900 in Paris hightlighting the neglect of old people.

Villa By the Sea seems obviously a Romantic gesture toward the smallness of individuals and their worldly cares.  All function as Rorschach tests of a kind; from daubs of paint and grains of chemicals our imaginations take flight.

Images:

1.  Georg Friedrich Kersting - Young Woman Weaving A Garland Of Leaves, 1815, National Gallery of Berlin.  

 2. & 3.  Angelo Morbelli - Songe et realite, c.1905, Casa Risparmio della Provence Lombarde, Milan.  

4. Clarence White - Autumn Allegro, c. 1905-1908, Musee d'Orsay, Paris.    5. Arnold Bocklin - Villa By The Sea, 1864, Bayerische State Gallery, Munich.