Beautiful survey. Allows one to get off our own rocking chair and into the heavens of what real nurturing love feels like. Many of these artists got it right, for whatever motivation.
Then of course you got Caravaggio ☄️🐍🔥🤺🐉⚔️🪽having them walk across a pit of snakes, fighting off demons, slaying societal and political dragons… but what else has a virgin with a baby got to do in a given day, anyway?
He was all about the drama, wasn't he? Forget just a sweet nativity scene; he had them walking through snake pits and battling demons like it was just another Tuesday. Honestly, I think that’s what makes him so captivating.
Are you familiar with Paula Modersohn-Becker? She was part of the Worpswede artist community and lived there and in the village of Fischerhude that my acestors left in 1837. Among other things she's noted for her self-portraits, incuding some of herself when pregnant. She had a complicated relationship with her artist husband, Paul Modersohn, and the idea of motherhood, but they welcomed their first child, a daughter. From Wikipedia:
She had complained of pain in her legs after the delivery, and was advised to remain in bed. When the physician returned on 20 November, he advised her to rise. She walked a few steps, then sat down, called for the infant to be placed in her arms, complained of leg pain, and died, saying only "What a pity".
She's such a fascinating and ahead-of-her-time artist. Her self-portraits, especially the ones showing her pregnant, are incredibly powerful and honest, which was really rare for that era. She brought such raw emotion to her work, especially around themes of motherhood and identity.
That story about her last moments is really heartbreaking. The way she asked to hold her baby, then quietly said “What a pity”….it just stays with you. It’s so tragic, especially knowing how much she still had to give as both an artist and a new mother.
Have you ever been back to visit the area or seen the KAFF?
Modersohn-Becker, Self-Portrait at 6th Wedding Anniversary
My wife and I visited in 1984 and I went with my dad in 2007. The combination house/barn built in 1797 and sold for passage in 1837 is still there. The whole town is like a time capsule. I was pretty excited when I first learned that our ancestral home was an artists' community since mom and dad did so much to encourage our love of art.
Her story is really quite incredible. The stresses of marriage and motherhood but adapting. Some of it reminds me of my marriage. Flaws to be sure but we haven't given up.
The landscape around Fischerhude reminds me of where I grew up in southern IL, fields and drainage ditches and lines of trees separating everything. Her husband Otto Modersohn captured that perfectly. Landscapes don't always need to have mountains.
So varied and shimmering these views, work I have not seen. Thanks.
So happy that you enjoyed!
Her style---raw and direct---resonates with me.
YKIKYK 🫂
Beautiful survey. Allows one to get off our own rocking chair and into the heavens of what real nurturing love feels like. Many of these artists got it right, for whatever motivation.
Then of course you got Caravaggio ☄️🐍🔥🤺🐉⚔️🪽having them walk across a pit of snakes, fighting off demons, slaying societal and political dragons… but what else has a virgin with a baby got to do in a given day, anyway?
He was all about the drama, wasn't he? Forget just a sweet nativity scene; he had them walking through snake pits and battling demons like it was just another Tuesday. Honestly, I think that’s what makes him so captivating.
😂
Are you familiar with Paula Modersohn-Becker? She was part of the Worpswede artist community and lived there and in the village of Fischerhude that my acestors left in 1837. Among other things she's noted for her self-portraits, incuding some of herself when pregnant. She had a complicated relationship with her artist husband, Paul Modersohn, and the idea of motherhood, but they welcomed their first child, a daughter. From Wikipedia:
She had complained of pain in her legs after the delivery, and was advised to remain in bed. When the physician returned on 20 November, he advised her to rise. She walked a few steps, then sat down, called for the infant to be placed in her arms, complained of leg pain, and died, saying only "What a pity".
She's such a fascinating and ahead-of-her-time artist. Her self-portraits, especially the ones showing her pregnant, are incredibly powerful and honest, which was really rare for that era. She brought such raw emotion to her work, especially around themes of motherhood and identity.
That story about her last moments is really heartbreaking. The way she asked to hold her baby, then quietly said “What a pity”….it just stays with you. It’s so tragic, especially knowing how much she still had to give as both an artist and a new mother.
Have you ever been back to visit the area or seen the KAFF?
Modersohn-Becker, Self-Portrait at 6th Wedding Anniversary
I'm so glad you know of her. Hometown pride 😁
My wife and I visited in 1984 and I went with my dad in 2007. The combination house/barn built in 1797 and sold for passage in 1837 is still there. The whole town is like a time capsule. I was pretty excited when I first learned that our ancestral home was an artists' community since mom and dad did so much to encourage our love of art.
Her story is really quite incredible. The stresses of marriage and motherhood but adapting. Some of it reminds me of my marriage. Flaws to be sure but we haven't given up.
The landscape around Fischerhude reminds me of where I grew up in southern IL, fields and drainage ditches and lines of trees separating everything. Her husband Otto Modersohn captured that perfectly. Landscapes don't always need to have mountains.