The word picturesque refers to an ideal type of landscape that has an artistic appeal, in that it is beautiful but also with some elements of wildness
(Picturesque – Art Term | Tate, 2020)
The image above was taken during ‘Beast from the East’. I was lucky enough to be up in Keswick and I’d gone out early to get some snow pictures. The image is typical of the ones that I tend to use as Christmas cards for example and to create notecards for elderly relatives as gifts. I call them ‘people pleasers’. What I’m finding is that as I progress through the course and strive to create meaning and narrative in my images, I have less of these to draw upon.
I think that the picturesque style of image can be described as that: ‘people pleasers’. There is something safe and non-confrontational about them. This type of image brings a sense of comfort. It evokes a gentle emotional response.
The Sublime I believe is connected with a sense of heroism but the picturesque relates to a craving for the perceived innocence and simplicity of the natural/rural landscape and a wildness of the garden of eden (before we complicated our lives). The truth of course is that rural life is not without it’s drawbacks. Whilst there is often a greater sense of community and less violent crime, it can be a place of hardship and isolation. The same might be true during the nineteenth century as in modern times, that rural dwellers may have less access to medicine, fewer work options and a reliance on hard manual labour. (Henley, 2020)
Picturesque images are used as adverts for tourist locations. During the nineteenth century this may not have been as overt as it is now but still as the industrial revolution began and there was a clearer distinction between what would be classed as urban versus rural, rural ‘retreat’ became synonymous with rest and health.
When I first took up photography, I subscribed to ‘Landscape photography magazine’. I was impressed by the technical quality of the images and it was something that I aspired to. I now view those images with boredom. Colour is often over saturated and the light levels too ‘convenient’ to appear realistic. That’s not to say I can’t appreciate a good postcard image as a memento of a holiday.
References and Bibliography
- Andrews, M., 2005. Landscape And Western Art. Oxford [etc.]: Oxford University Press.
- Tate. 2020. Picturesque – Art Term | Tate. [online] Available at: <https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/p/picturesque> [Accessed 30 March 2020].
- Henley, W., 2020. Escape To The Country: Is Rural Life Healthier For Workers?. [online] the Guardian. Available at: <https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/country-rural-life-healthier-city-workers> [Accessed 30 March 2020].
Landscape, Place and Environment 