Rousseau's Exotic Landscape

Henry Rousseau's Exotic Landscape, 1910 is a painting of a tropical landscape as imagined by the artist. Rousseau combines a variety of foliage, flowers, and frolicking monkeys in a scene that reflects his interpretation of a far off place that exists nowhere in reality, but on his canvas. His construction of this exotic place can be seen in person at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena, as well as in reproduction in a variety of formats. A common way most viewers will have an opportunity to see this painting (or rather an image of it) is in digital format on the internet. When looking at this or any any painting online it is important to remember that there is a significant difference between seeing it this way and actually viewing the it in person. The physical quality cannot be captured in digital format and it is this aspect of the original that is not available in reproduction.

While a reproduction of a painting is no substitute for the actual thing, it can allow the viewer an opportunity learn a good deal about the original. There are certain aspects that can be seen in both a painting and a digital image of it, including the composition, the various elements within the painting, and any narrative aspect of the work.

Looking at an online image of Exotic Landscape allows me to make a formal analysis of its composition. Beginning at the bottom, the foreground is filled with tall, thick grass that alternatively leans in patches to the left and right creating several "v" shaped gaps in the grass. Emerging from behind one such gap in the center foreground is a hairy leg aimed upwards along with a pair of furry arms that seem to be juggling oranges falling from a tree above. Behind these appendages is a patch of dark foliage that begins at the left edge and moves horizontally across the image, terminating at a grey monkey who sits with both hands holding an orange in front of his dark face as his eyes gaze off to the left. The lower middle ground is marked by a row of white and red flowers. There are four seemingly oversized white flowers on the right, a line of red flowers in the middle, and a vertical group of flowers growing from a single plant on the left. The upper right portion of the composition is dominated by an orange tree with dark green leaves, filled with bloated, overripe fruit. Its dark trunk emerges from the patch of dark foliage below, growing into deep grey branches that contrast against the bright, cerulean sky. From one of these branches hangs a somewhat diminutive, blue eyed, blonde and tan monkey with another like creature of larger size dangling from his legs. The upper left half of the image is filled with another tree with dark trunk and branches which are visible behind massive ochre green and viridian leaves. These leaves along with those of the orange tree are layered on top of more distant foliage creating a dense pattern of leafy, green shapes.

Standing in front of the actual painting I can make the same visual analysis of Exotic Landscape, however I am able to appreciate its scale and the full richness of the painting's color and surface. I can see the glossy varnish, thick paint, and the direction of Rousseau's brush strokes of the leaves and fur. The fuzzy dry brushed edges of the white flowers on the right are visible as is the wet on wet blending of paint Rousseau employed to paint the monkeys and foliage. It also becomes clear that he painted the branches before the leaves and fruit, because in areas where these elements overlap the darkness of the branches shows through. The color is more varied and rich in the original versus the web image with subtleties like the use of orange to delineate the more pale monkey's facial features only visible when looking at the painting in the museum.