Constructing a view: Contemporary approaches to landscape composition
About the event
Join artist Aliki Braine for a practical course exploring the history of Western landscape painting through playful approaches to drawing and image making. Although many of the National Gallery’s best loved exhibits depict the outdoors, landscapes were historically considered to be the lowest ranking subject in the hierarchy of painting. So much so that a text published in 1548 quotes Michelangelo dismissing landscape painting, claiming that ‘though it pleases some persons, it is done without reason or art…’. Part of the reason for this dismissal is that landscape images often rely on direct observation and topographical accuracy and were believed to lack invention or creativity. This course revisits and challenges these ideas, examining how artists have transformed landscape painting through composition, imagination and invention. Taking inspiration from some of the great landscape paintings in the collection, including works by Ruisdael, Claude, Constable, Corot and Monet, you will analyse the visual elements that make these works compelling. Using playful methods of drawing, cutting, folding and weaving, inspired by Braine’s own photographic landscape works, you will gather compositions, visual elements and natural forms from collection paintings to create your own constructed landscapes. This session is suitable for all levels of artists. All materials are provided, and your work is yours to take home. Handouts with extra resources will be provided in advance of the session. Suitable for participants aged 18 or over.
