Towards the Creation of Contemporary African Landscape Art
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18533/jah.v11i05.2278Keywords:
African Landscape Art, Earth, Tree ringsAbstract
Landscape refers to all the physical natural features of an area. These features have been changing under the influence of natural forces and human activities. They have been depicted by artists across the world over time as landscape art, and can provide a basis for historical inquiry. Landscape art has also been used as a tool to express fears of increased industrialization and ecological disasters. However, the representation of the landscape in Africa is mainly impressionistic without any implicit ideology. This study therefore aims to use landscape art as a tool to call attention to the problems of the physical African landscape, especially changes due to degradation and fragmentation of the land. To achieve this, the study innovates the use of parched earth and tree rings. Locally sourced red earth was applied over wood canvas and exposed to heat from portable electric heater. This resulted in similar natural parched earth patterns, over which was then applied the tree rings pattern using concentrated acrylic. This creation encompasses ideas about the land and drought, to deviate from the typical images of landscape painting in Africa, often depicting imaginary scenery.
References
Archer, D. (2009). The Long Thaw: How Humans are Changing the Next 100,000 Years of Earth’s Climate. Princeton University Press.
Art Burning Art Explosion (2021). Song Chen: She Uses 'Earth Ink' to Explore the Spiritual Narrative of Primitive Creation. https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/xe6TrGKuw_vFYJDjtWW0pg
Asia Society, (2022). True-View Landscape in Korean Painting of the Late Joseon Period (17th-20th Century). https://asiasociety.org/korea/events/true-view-landscape-korean-painting-late-joseon-period-17th-20th-century
Astra WorldPress (2022) ,Masterpieces of Japanese Culture Wabi and Sabi, unique sense of Japanese art - Masterpieces of Japanese Culture. https://www.masterpiece-of-japanese-culture.com/spirit/wabi-and-sabi-japanese-unique-sense-of-art
Blumberg, N. (2020, April 3). Landscape Painting. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/art/landscape-painting
Elysa Jana Lasap (2022) What Is Art | PDF | Nature | Experience (https://www.scribd.com/document/523504426/What-is-Art)
Fiona Moffat (2013) Insider Guide to Central Otago and Queenstown Lakes. Rachel Hirabayashi. https://www.rachelhirabayashi.co.nz/about.html
Foster, J. (2008). Washed with Sun. University of Pittsburg Press, Pittsburg.
Graham's gallery (2020). Jacob Hendrik Pierneef - Impressionist Modern. https://grahamsgallery.co.za/profile/jacob-hendrik-pierneef/
Hullabaloo (2022). Gail de Jong. https://www.hullabalooartists.co.nz/gail-de-jong
Hye Seung Lee (2016). Tradition of Korean Landscape: Its Historic Perspective and Indigenization. International Journal of Korean Humanities and Social Sciences.2(49), https://doi.org/10.14746/kr.2016.02.04.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. (2022, May 6). Horn of Africa: IFRC Secretary General Visits Kenya as Worst Drought in 40 Years Looms for Millions, [Press Release]. https://www.ifrc.org/press-release/horn-africa-ifrc-secretary-general-visits-kenya-worst-drought-40-years-looms-millions
Inwood, H. (2008). At the Crossroads: Situating Place Based Art Education. Canadian Journal of Environmental Education.13 (1), 29-41. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ842767.pdf
Jeffrey Blankenship (2011). Mid-Twentieth Century American Landscapes: The Abstract and the Everyday. In Points of View: Landscapes From the Collections. The Davis Gallery at Houghton House Hobart and William Smith Colleges. https://www.hws.edu/academics/davisgallery/pdf/points_of_view.pdf
Julien Delagrange (2022). The Best Contemporary Landscape Painting: A Complete Survey. http://www.contemporaryartissue.com/the-best-contemporary-landscape-painting-a-complete-survey/
Masih, I. (2014). A Review of Droughts on the African Continent: A Geospatial and Long-Term Perspective. Hydrology and Earth System Sciences Discussions (11), 2679-2718. https://doi.org/10.5194/hessd-11-2679-2014
Newham, P. (2010). South African Landscape Painting 1848-2008 a Hand Book for Teachers: A Minor Dissertation Presented in Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Masters in Historical Studies [Unpublished Master’s Dissertation]. University of Cape Town https://open.uct.ac.za/bitstream/handle/11427/11018/thesis_hum_2010_newham_p.pdf?sequence=1
Olusegun Jide Ajiboye and Michael Olusegun Fajuyigbe Developmental History of Landscape Painting in Modern Nigerian Art: The Lagos State Example. The Journal of Pan African Studies, Vol.8, No.2, July 2015. https://www.academia.edu/69483793/Developmental_History_of_Landscape_Painting_In_Modern_Nigerian_Art_The_Lagos_State_Example
Sarapik Virve and Ventsel Andreas (2017). Ideology and Art. Studies on Art and Architecture, 26 (1-2), 7-14 (https://www.academia.edu/35674672/Ideology_and_art).
Sheereen Othman (2017) The Living Forest: What Tree Rings tell us about the Life of a Tree. Labor Day Foundation. https://arbordayblog.org/misctrees/living-forest-tree-rings-tell-us-life-tree/
Tate (2022) https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/anselm-kiefer-1406
TCLF - The Cultural Landscape Foundation (February 8, 2020) About Cultural Landscapes | The Cultural Landscape Foundation (https://www.tclf.org/places/about-cultural-landscapes)
The J. Paul Getty Museum (2022). Brief History of the Landscape Genre. https://www.getty.edu/education/teachers/classroom_resources/curricula/landscapes/background1.html
Visual Arts Cork, (2022). Landscape Painting - Definition, History, Development, Movements of Landscape Art. http://www.visual-arts-cork.com/genres/landscape-painting.htm
Xiaojing Wen and Paul White (2020). The Role of Landscape Art in Cultural and National Identity: Chinese and European Comparisons. Sustainability 12 (13): 5472. DOI: 10.3390/su12135472
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2022 Ikechukwu, Penninah Nakachwa, Professor, Ogwu Zainab
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
