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The idyllic landscapes of Claude Lorrain (1600-1682) have haunted the European imagination since the 17th century, inspiring countless painters and poets through their magical effects of light and their idealised vision of nature. Though many depict identifiable religious or mythological themes, others - such as this picture - simply portray a group of arcadian figures in a classical setting. Typically, the artist frames his landscapes with a group of trees in the foreground and a counterbalancing mass on the opposite side, as in this picture, where a castle on a cliff encloses the scene at the right. In the middle is a seemingly limitless vista of hills and fields permeated by an ethereal morning light. Though the infinite nuances of colour and tone that Claude introduces into such passages were frequently imitated, they remain unsurpassed. Peace and serenity pervade the landscape, with the music-making shepherds symbolising the harmony between man and nature. Though born in Lorraine, Claude settled in Rome in the late 1620s, where he quickly established a reputation as a leading landscape painter. Among his many distinguished clients were Philip IV, King of Spain, and Pope Urban VIII. This picture is one of two painted for the Marquis de Fontenay, French Ambassador to Rome, between 1641 and 1646.

Category: Painting

Institute: The Barber Institute of Fine Arts

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