Bernard Goldberg Fine Arts

Provenance:

Barbara Mathes Gallery, New York

Private Collection, New York, acquired from the above

Oscar Bluemner was born in Prenzlau, Prussia (now Germany) in 1867. He trained and practiced as an architect in Berlin prior to immigrating to Chicago in hopes of securing work for the World’s Fair of 1893. By 1900, he had become a naturalized U.S. citizen and resided in New York where he was gainfully employed as an architect. Initially a student of the fine arts, Bluemner continued to create paintings in his free time during these years. By late 1907, however, his desire to paint began to eclipse his interest in architecture, and by 1912, he abandoned the latter profession to concentrate all of his energies on visual art. Determined to launch a successful painting career, Bluemner frequented New York galleries to acquaint himself with the new developments in modern art. In particular, he was impressed by the work of the French Impressionists and Post-Impressionists.

His decision to give up architecture coincided with his budding friendship with the pioneering American modernist Alfred Stieglitz. Proprietor of the famed 291 Gallery, Stieglitz encouraged innovative styles and provided a venue for artists to discuss artistic philosophies and practices. Integrated into 291 Gallery’s important circle of American painters, sculptors and photographers, Bluemner was given his first solo exhibition there in 1915.

Bluemner abandoned architecture, yet its presence resonates throughout his oeuvre. Depopulated landscapes, usually depicting places in his home state of New Jersey, occupied by somewhat isolated, manmade structures are his signature theme. For Bluemner, though, it was color rather than form that served as the primary vehicle for the expression of his moods and his inner consciousness. His strong interest in color theory led him to create abstracted pictorial compositions based upon intersecting planes of vibrant primary colors. When asked to explain his love for combining elements of color theory with wrought architectural forms, he once said, “Landscape painting speaks to the soul like a poem, or music, more intimately than any other kind of painting. I present a surprising vision of landscape by the daring new use of colors.” Ultimately, the artist’s reputation relies heavily on his talent as a colorist; dubbing himself “The Vermillionaire,” Bluemner especially relished the voluptuousness of red hues.

The artist’s distinctive use of red is exemplified by Untitled (Landscape) from the early 1920s. In this work, Bluemner abstracted the forms of the forest and the buildings into their elemental components, skillfully punctuating the overall green tonality of the piece with areas of vivid reds. Framed by billowy spreads of foliage, the otherwise vertical composition is offset by the strong diagonal line that indicates the slope of the hill. To counterbalance the weight of the prominent structure in the center ground, the artist inserted another building, partially obscured by a tree trunk, on the left and two non-representational geometric elements in the lower left. At the center of the image, a mysterious tree with tentacle-like branches that seem capable of movement suffuses the work with a mood of intrigue. Enticing for its overall composition, in which each pictorial element carries equal schematic importance, Untitled (Landscape) demonstrates Bluemner’s consummate skill in evoking sensations through powerful color harmonies.