Here is a tonalist painting by Charles Warren Eaton. Today a new
book arrived called, "Intimate Landscapes of Charles Warren Eaton and the
Tonalist Movement in American Art 1880-1920" by David Cleveland.
I have often admired tonalist paintings. When you live in Maine there
are many low light days where a tonalist painting is possible. I thought it would
be a great idea to study this type of painting. Here are some interesting facts
about tonalism.
1. Painted at dawn or dusk when light is low.
2. Details are abandoned for broader brushstrokes and subtle transitions of tone.
3. Emphasis is on mass and form not color or line or detail.
4. Neutral palette-mainly cool colors: green, blue, mauve, violent, grays, to produce
one dominate tone.
5. High horizons to bring dramatic focus to foreground features.
6. Glazing techniques, layering thin layers of pigments suspended in oil or varnish to
achieve tonalism. Wet in to wet painting can be done en plein air. Value sketches on location
can be done and then working from them in the studio is a possibility with color notes.
7. Rising mists, moonlight, silvery light, twilight, sunrise are subjects preferred.
8. Warm undertones and cool overtones achieve vibration of color.
9. Refraction-play of adjoining color masses "lost edge" technique which resulted in
general diffusion of tone and atmospheric quality.
10. Painting is of a generalized place. No recognizable location. Lacks local associations which
allows for the imagination and spiritual overtones.
11. There were no (people) or figures within the painting. Why no people in these paintings? Figures
were thought to adulterate deeper spiritual matters. Seems like some tonalist did put figures in their paintings.
12. Sometimes a pond was painted in the lower foreground. (I have always wondered why the painter did this?)
Reason: The pond is a way of anchoring the compositional design while reflecting the muted sky. Gaining a sense
of overall balance and harmony. (I sometimes thought the pond was distracting).
13. Blottings were used to lower the chromatics or establish pale highlights. Calligraphic details were reduced. Soft
edges seem to be important with a hard edge near the center of interest.
14. Tonalism was thought to have been inspired by civil war trauma, stress of industrialization,
rapid grown of cities during 1880-1920. Tonalism offered amospheric, spiritual, dreamlike, ephermeral, poetic paintings.
Here is a Ralph Blakelook painting of the moon. Blakelook was a tonalist painter.
Here is a Alexander Wyant painting of the moon. Also a tonalist.
Here is Elliot Daingerfield's moonlight painting.
Another Charles Warren Eaton moonlight painting. Notice how large his signature was!
My favorite tonalist painting so far.
Still another Charles Warren Eaton moonlight painting.
Here are some other interesting bits of information about tonalism from this book.
1. Tonalism painting where placed in heavy gold guilded frames placed in victorian
parlors to function as a focus for spiritual contemplation similar to religious art and votary statues.
2. Charles Warren Eaton was not a religious man. Near the time of his death he allowed a
Catholic Priest to babtized him. He told his caretaker this was a mistake, not to allow the priest
back in, and requested a Presbyterian minister to officiate the funeral.
3. While Monet painted a series of haystacks at different times of the day to capture different
qualities and textures of light, Eaton painted a series of haystacks at various atmospheric conditions
with emotional presence. Eaton also painted "serial motif" of white pines and Bruges Poplars.
4. Eaton painted white pines because they were becoming scarce. White pines were being harvested for fuel.
Soon coal was available to replace white pines. Then white pines were allowed to regrow.
5. Artists and writers were inspired by the white pines. Thoreau's writing inspired Charles Warren Eaton
to paint white pines.
6. Eaton liked 2 or 3 large boulders in his painting's foregrounds. He thought the gray color of the rock
contrasted with the green of the surroundings. The boulders or rocks were points for the eye instead of cottages.
They were used as decorative patterns to lead the viewer through the composition. He kept highlights for
the edges of these boulders. Stonewalls provided contrasts with these boulders. Stonewalls suggested labor
once involved in clearing such places. Some rocks were left behind as reminders nature's permanent
foothold on the land.
Here is a painting by George Inness, possibly one of the most famous of all tonalist painters. He
loved Charles Warren Eaton's work so much he purchased a painting. They lived near each other and
were friends. Not all tonalist paintings are darkly painted.
Another George Inness painting.
Another George Inness painting.
This is a painting by James Abbott Mc Neill Whisler. He is credited for teaching
many tonalist painters and inspire them to follow tonalism.
A still life by John Enneking. Nice dark background really highlights the Daffodils!
Here is a John Henry Twachtman painting. He seemed to paint less dark.
One of my favorite tonalist painters is Dwight Tryon. I love how simple and peaceful the painting is.
Another Dwight Tryon painting.
Another Dwight Tryon painting!
Here is John Enneking's work.
Here is T. Alexander Harrison's work.
Another T. Alexander Harrison painting.
Dwight Tryon painting. I have seen this one in person in Columbia, Georgia in a private home. Spectacular!
I hope you enjoyed this information about tonalist paintings. You might be able to recognize a tonalist
painting now! Have a great night!
John La Farge's tonalist painting. Love it!
