This week we would like to present you with the second lecture of our three-part series given by Tom Richards focusing on various dualisms within the broad genre of “landscape.”

The first lecture “Symbols vs. Facts” introduced us to the series and began with an invitation to consider how people have created art that reflects the world around them throughout time, as well as the symbolic and very real threats and inspirations that the natural world presents.

Throughout this lecture we focus on the “real” and the “ideal” in landscape paintings and drawings. From the realm of dreamy landscapes that reflect the historical context of their maker, to those that ground more surreal compositions with touches of realism, Tom Richards takes us through works by artists such as Titian, El Greco, Vincent van Gogh, Claude Lorrain and Jacob van Ruisdael – carefully considering the purpose of the inclusion of the various vistas, as well as their elements of composition, motifs used by certain artists, and how artists were influenced by others. Through this fantastic exploration of varied works, we are also asked to contemplate the purpose of the landscape in the artwork, be it a study for a later painting, a compositional or narrative element, or a representational “portrait of a place.” Conjured from the imagination or memory of the artist, or studied en plein air, the real and ideal aspects of the natural world in artwork say much more than first meets the eye.

If you would like to further research the works from the lecture we have selected details on artists and artworks below, in the order presented in the lecture!