The Depiction of Human Emotions in Landscapes
Peter Fischer, Above Massawippi
Viewing a painting of a landscape is similar to reading a description of a landscape in a novel-although the viewer perceives a detailed image of nature, the image often contains underlying emotional significance. In literature, the literary device that authors use to portray human emotions in the form of nature is called pathetic fallacy. For example, if the author wants to convey a character’s feelings of isolation and sadness, they may describe a cold and chilly night, and if they want to convey a character’s feelings of anger, they may describe a drastic and vicious thunderstorm.
Peter Fischer, Misty Morning II
Similarly, artists use a visual form of pathetic fallacy to convey human emotion in the depiction of landscapes. However, it may be harder for the viewer to recognize that a landscape consists of underlying emotional significance since the viewer is not aware of the artist’s life or back story. For example, an artist may depict a beautiful blue sky with dark clouds in the background to allude to an emotional event that took place in their life. Artists may use pathetic fallacy in paintings for personal and emotional reasons that are not directly clear to the viewer.
Peter Fischer, Lower Saint Lawrence
This is essentially what Navillus Gallery artists Peter Fischer and Philip Sybal accomplish in their artwork, through their juxtaposition of bright and dark landscapes. For example, in Peter Fischer’s piece Above Massawippi, the foreground consists of a wooden cottage lying amongst a beautiful and lush golden field, but in the background is a storm that is gradually worsening and drawing closer. In his painting Kamouraska Misty Morning II, a beautiful emerald green field is amongst a foggy white sky. In one of Philip Sybal’s landscapes, the viewer witnesses a Muskoka like setting, consisting of a rocky island surrounded by a beautiful blue lake. However, in the foreground is a developing storm that extends into the viewer’s space and draws them into the composition.
Philip Sybal, Georgian Bay
The landscapes by Peter Fischer and Philip Sybal display their ability to depict nature, as well as their ability to add mysticism and suspense to their paintings. They are great paintings to hang in your home.