by donald dusinberre imartsyfartsy@gmail.com
Let’s face it: there are countless artists intent on painting landscapes and wildlife. Most of them are not very good. It’s unfortunate that such natural beauty can be so thoroughly butchered at the hands of so many incompetent artists, but fortunately for us, Jacksonville is home to one of the most accomplished artists painting landscapes today.
I can certainly understand the desire to recreate beauty, but an artist must really study his/her subject to understand what they can do to succeed. There are lots of ways to paint, but there are just as many ways not to paint.
Really, one must look no further than the work of Jim Draper. Draper is among the few artists who can actually capture the glory of nature and allow us to experience it while indoors. Even photos can’t do what his paintings can. Concentrating his subject matter primarily on the Southeastern United States, his paintings of landscapes and animals are among the most sophisticated I’ve seen.
On display at the Stellers Gallery Annex in Neptune Beach, Draper’s new paintings are somewhat of a departure from his signature subject. Palm trees were (and remain) his primary subject, yet he is quite adept at capturing a variety of subjects, including cows and egrets. In fact, many of his landscape paintings currently on display don’t specifically call attention to the palm tree; instead, they revel in the density of this region’s forests.
In particular, I enjoyed his Eden landscapes, somewhat impressionistic works that utilize distinct brushstrokes to create a unique sense of light and color. The Eden landscapes don’t even attempt to sharply describe their scenes; they squint for you. They’re wonderful, blurry visions of nature that probably come closer to what one might really see than if he tried to capture every small detail.
Indeed, that element of Draper’s body of work is what makes it so sophisticated. Too many artists either try to document nature by obsessing over too many details or they try to glaze over it with too few. The real genius of Draper’s work lies between those extremes, and it all has to do with the application of paint. You can tell that his brush is loaded with paint and that he applies it with confidence. There are no Bob Ross shortcuts.
I’ve long tried to determine what it is about landscapes that bored me so much, and it was an unusual pleasure to view such a great collection of paintings. The gallery’s staff members were friendly and inquisitive, and we spent some time comparing each other’s thoughts and opinions on the display. I don’t often get a chance to discuss my impression as I’m looking at a work of art, as I usually must store all my thoughts until I write them down in these reviews. Furthermore, it was nice to hear the thoughtful opinions of someone who genuinely enjoyed landscapes.
Between the Cummer’s current display of American art and Draper’s exhibition at the Stellers Gallery Annex, my appreciation for landscape painting has been renewed. Yes, there are countless paintings that I believe are best suited as tinder, but it’s refreshing to know that there really is an artist capable of continuing the long tradition of landscape painting.
Check out the work of Jim Draper at the Stellers Gallery Annex, 200 First Street in Neptune Beach. For more information on the Stellers Gallery and their hours of operation, call (904) 247-7200, or visit stellersgallery.com.
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