A New Acquisition for the Clark: Théodore Rousseau’s La Ferme dans les Landes
Théodore Rousseau's La Ferme dans les Landes - La Maison du Garde, oil on canvas, Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute
At a time when many institutions are seriously discussing deaccessioning and other radical means of keeping afloat, the Clark can boast of a fascinating new acquisition, Théodore Rousseau's La Ferme dans les Landes - La Maison du Garde (oil on canvas, 64.5 x 99.1 cm; 25.4 x 39 in.). While the Clark has several charming small works from the Barbizon School, it has been on the lookout for a major, representative painting, and when it appeared with the Matthiesen Gallery, first at Maastricht and later in their London galleries, the museum took steps to acquire it.
This heavily worked landscape had a most curious genesis—which was nonetheless characteristic of the artist. Rousseau had a penchant for plein-air painting from an early age, and he became known as one of its luminaries, but he firmly, even obsessively believed that the height of art was a laborious perfection achieved over many years. He once said that "A man should be bold enough, faithful enough, rich enough, to produce only one prodigious work; so that this work should be a masterpiece."
Read the full article on the Berkshire Review for the Arts.
