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Aug 31, 2016
Aug 31, 2016
Sep 15, 2016
Paysage au serpent (Landscape with Snake)
Paysage au serpent (Landscape with Snake)
1927
André Masson
(French, 1896–1987)
Oil on canvas
Unframed: 65 x 46 cm (25 9/16 x 18 1/8 in.)
Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund 2016.55
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Did you know?
Although this type of painting was known as "automatic," Masson acknowledged that the process was both subconscious and conscious.
Description
Surrealists such as André Masson believed that reality could be grasped only by unlocking the secrets of the subconscious mind. His pioneering technique known as automatic painting emphasized working spontaneously, thereby allowing subconscious thoughts to emerge during the creative process. Masson worked rapidly when painting Landscape with Snake, applying gestural brushstrokes over a tan background and gouging through wet paint with a pencil. While forms occasionally coalesce to suggest a snake, a bird, or water flowing through a forest, the true subject is the dynamic process of painting.
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