The Creative Scene investigation of this plein air work was a challenge. The question is often asked: "How does one differentiate between a sunrise and a sunset sky?" I rely on the cloud type, their illumination and the wind direction (as revealed by the clouds) for starters. Sometimes the cloud structure can be the solution by placing the painting within the Conveyor Belt Conceptual Model. There are even some astronomical applications but those are typically not available when working with paintings. "Sunset Spring 1916" is an excellent example of the application of these principles.
This painting was never included in the "Tom Thomson Was A Weatherman" presentations. The clues within the brushstrokes were just too ambiguous. I could not even easily convince myself (and I can be pretty gullible) about the proper diagnosis. I certainly did not wish to mislead or confuse any audience members. Credibility is hard to foster and easily lost.
Including "Sunset Spring 1916" in this blog is certainly OK though. I feel responsible for giving every plein-air painting by Tom Thomson the same fair treatment. Mistakes might be made but I will try to keep them small and forgivable.
Tom Thomson had made a stop in Huntsville at the home of Winifred Trainor in mid-March 1916. Tom was on his way to Mowat Lodge in Algonquin. He would stay at Canoe Lake until mid-April when he would be visited by Lawren Harris, Lawren's cousin Chester Harris and his patron Dr. James MacCallum. Tom might have painted "Sunset Spring 1916" after his visit with Winnie but before his guests arrived. Tom could have also completed this panel while travelling with his friends. Tom would head to Achray on Grand Lake later in May to work the summer as a Forest Ranger - there was precious little time to paint after that.
Sunset Spring 1916 Oil on wood panel 8 1/2 x 10 1/2 in. (21.6 x 26.7 cm) Tom Thomson's Paint Box Size |
- Looking East at Sunset, Front-lit, southerly wind, Belt of Venus;
- Looking West at Sunset, Back-lit, northerly wind;
- Looking West at Sunrise, Front-lit, northerly wind, Belt of Venus; and
- Looking East at Sunrise, Back-lit, southerly wind.
The Belt of Venus Explained |
The front-lit options explain the colours and the illumination of the clouds best but do not shed any light on the central glow above the horizon. The Belt of Venus even helps to explain the pink tint displayed in the clouds.
The back-lit options explain the central glow above the horizon but there is a lot of hand-waving and conjecture required to justify that the clouds (which should be optically thick) were bright and not dark in their central masses. The Belt of Venus is not an available option for any back-lit illumination.
The turbulent cumulus fractus-type cloud is most likely at sunset after a day of heating, instability and wind. Turbulent cumulus clouds are unlikely at sunrise unless the winds are northerly and cold air advection keeps the winds blowing all night as in Option 3 above.
Cumulus clouds in the morning would need to be associated with a weather system in order to be present. The altocumulus clouds are evidence that this was a possibility. The altocumulus reveals that large-scale dynamic lift was acting in the atmosphere. I could even make an argument that the mid-level cloud had a deformation zone structure to it on the distant horizon. But those patches of cloud could be either coming or going so the deformation zone pattern would be inconclusive anyway.
The water surface was calm which is a common event at sunrise after a night of stabilization and radiational cooling. Calm waters are also possible at sunset if the planetary boundary level had started to develop with the setting of the sun. The calm water is not a definitive clue in this situation.
I considered creating a spreadsheet and assigning points for the attributes that are explained and lesser values for those that require more hand-waving. But that would not be an objective solution either - just a subjective option with numbers assigned. I decided to attempt to diagnose each option one at a time to determine the most likely solution.
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2. Looking West at Sunset, Back-lit, northerly wind |
3. Looking West at Sunrise, Front-lit, northerly wind, Belt of Venus |
4. Looking East at Sunrise, Back-lit, southerly wind |
Option 1 explains the most visual facts in the painting which is not a coincidence (it was always my number one choice). The only stumbling block is the central glow and I can adjust for that weakness by noting Tom's penchant for painting sunsets and some mild hand-waving. It also agrees with the original sunset estimate by whoever named this painting and who obviously knew Tom. Perhaps Lawren Harris was even with Tom at the time!
The bright clouds within that yellow circle cast an aura which might be responsible for that area "glowing". Those front-lit bright clouds were illuminated by the direct beams of the sun that tracked above the level of the low cloud. Those low clouds were left in the relative dark and the pink zone of the Belt of Venus. The mid-clouds were higher and were bathed in yellow-tinted light direct from the sun.
In addition, the contrast between the bright altocumulus and the overlapping more subdued cumulus fractus, makes them appear even brighter. If you look closely, the sky colour within that yellow circle is not really much brighter than the surrounding sky at the same elevation above the horizon. The apparent bright glow within the yellow circle might be more of an optical illusion and one that artists regularly deliberately employ.
The following graphic may assist further. I applied the second option to Tom's sunset painting. There are some other hints included (for free) on how to use your hand and fingers to measure the motion of the sun in terms of time or angles. The angles and scales are greatly exaggerated for illustration purposes. Remember that the Earth's atmosphere is comparable in scale to the skin of an apple.
Tom under the Anticyclonic Companion of a weak and fast-moving weather system |
Feature 1 in the above comparison around the Petawa Hills is Louie Creek. |
There is one last piece of evidence that needs to be considered. Let's consider another sunset from the same spring of 1916 for comparison and see how Tom handled the colours. Tom would have been using the same palette and quite likely an identical slate of oil paints for each work.
In spite of being painted at possibly the same time, these two sunset paintings are very different. Tom was simply looking in different directions. Tom painted what he saw.
There is a huge difference between looking away from the sun and into the light at sunset. |
The view looking westerly from the Whitson Lake campsite is also quite convincing in its similarities to the terrain Tom painted looking into the light of the sunset. Those details are included in the next graphic.
The Algonquin forest has grown back from those days of logging and extensive fires. The details of the terrain that Thomson painted are now cloaked. The similarities presented almost allow us to look over Tom's shoulder as he painted, inspired by the beauty of the weather and nature. Of course, we will never know for certain...
Finally, J.E.H. MacDonald and Lawren Harris met in the Studio Building in the spring of 1918. Tom's paintings from the Shack had been stacked in the Studio Building. Harris and MacDonald planned to sort through Tom's art, make comments on the back and distribute what they felt were the best examples of his genius. Both of these paintings were in that stack of panels and both display the "TT Estate Stamp".
Patron Dr. James MacCallum funded the Thomson Estate Stamp which was designed by MacDonald |
One of these friends identified this as a sunset painting (among many with very similar names) and that is worth a few extra points. I suspect they thought that Tom was looking into the sunset instead of away. Perhaps it was even Lawren who chose the name and might have been with Tom for these sunsets when they were painting together in late April of 1916. As my Thomson friend points out, "Lawren Harris received his commission at Camp Borden on May 5th, 1916, so presumably had returned to Toronto around the beginning of May, thus suggesting the time of the fishing trip was probably in the second half of April."
"Sunset Spring 1916" as it would have appeared in Tom's Paint Box |
Inscription recto:
- l.r., estate stamp Inscription verso:
- c.?, estate stamp; in graphite, 27
- Private Collection, Vancouver Island
Provenance:
- Estate of the artist
- Ralph Thomson, Seattle as no. 2 of three sketches described in Martin Baldwin's list of 7 May 1937 as belonging to Henry Thomson, Seattle and as "Sunset, yellow green sky, clouds, blue green hills, lake in front,"
- Ruth Wilkins, Renton, Washington, by descent, 1970
- Private Collection, Vancouver Island
The Thomson Brothers with Tom Harkness, Brother-in-Law. Thomas “Tom” J. Harkness was the husband of Tom's eldest sister, Elizabeth. |
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