Cypress

"Cypresses"
Vincent van Gogh, 1889

My local newspaper recently ran an article in the Garden section about the cypress tree. I was delighted to see that the article focused on Vincent van Gogh's depictions of the beautiful cypress trees in the south of France. The article noted that the cypress species that van Gogh painted were most likely a fatter, more irregular type than the pencil-thin cypress that we see today. Hmmm.That helps explain

Cypress Trees



"Five Sisters", (c) Lesley Powell 2013
30 x 40, Oil on Canvas
Available

While in the south of France this past summer, I became fascinated with the cypress trees. I was taken by their shapes...tall, narrow, reaching upward. I have heard the shape called "flame-like", and that seems very apt. In the strong winds, the trees bend, lean and sway, acting much like flames flickering on a candle.

Vincent van Gogh wrote to his brother Theo that the cypress trees "have such beautiful lines and proportions, like an Egyptian obelisk." Well, I have a weakness for the classical shapes of the ancient world, such as the obelisk and the urn, so that might help to explain my fascination with the cypress.

"Cypress and Vineyards" (c) Lesley Powell 2013
30 x 24, oil on canvas
Available 

Van Gogh also wrote about the difficulty of getting the dark color of the cypress correct. He called it "one of the most interesting shades of black, and the most difficult to get right, that I can possibly imagine." I heartily concur! I found it hard to make the cypress as dark as it actually is...a dramatic dark in an otherwise very bright, sunny landscape.

I tried to capture the majesty of the cypresses in the two paintings shown above. You can read more about the "Five Sisters" here, or the "Cypress and Vineyards" here.