Sea coast in moonlight

Axel Wilhelm Nordgren, the son of portrait painter Carl Wilhelm Nordgren, commenced studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Stockholm. In 1851, he moved to  Düsseldorf, where he first continued studies in the studio of Hans Gude and later decided to settle there for good. He is perceived as the representative of the Düsseldorf School in landscape painting of the 2nd half of the 19th century. Nordgren manifests an innovative mode of understanding the landscape and shows interest in the issue of light, typical for this school. His paintings are distinguished by in-depth observation of nature and casual painting texture, in spite of clear references to the tradition of Romantic painting. The atmospheric nocturne from Szczecin, showing the sea coast illuminated by the moon in a wide frame, also displays features typical for Nordgren’s mature style. The undulating sea shore is highlighted by contrasts between the dark land and the illuminated water. The landscape enraptures the viewers with the wealth of colour procedures applied by the artist, in particular in the section of heaven with delicate clouds and presentation of the surface of the sea, in spite of preservation of uniform colours.

Dariusz Kacprzak