The Trees by André Derain

In this brilliant interpretation of the southern landscape, Derain André composes with “The Trees” an emblematic work of the fauve revolution. The painter frees himself from the constraints of classical perspective to celebrate nature through pure colors applied in an arbitrary way. This luminous and joyful work expresses the feeling of heat and glare typical of the landscapes of the South of France.

In the foreground, several trees with slender trunks of bright red, orange and purple rise from an ochre ground covered with dry leaves. Their graphic silhouettes cross each other and lead the eye toward a screen of dense bushes in green, blue and golden hues. In the background, a chain of majestic mountains in shades of blue and purple stands out against a very light yellow sky dotted with small white dots. The light, diffuse and vibrant, floods the whole scene, cancelling any sensation of cast shadow in favor of a pure colorful vibration. The absence of useless details reinforces the monumentality of the forms and the decorative harmony of wild nature.

The artist shows an exceptional control of pure color as a tool for spatial construction and poetic expression. His free and rhythmic touch shows first-class craftsmanship, capable of transmuting light into pure colorful sensation.