Opening Hours
Daily: 10 A.M.–5 P.M.
Closed on Tuesdays
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
Drawings
Le Forêt (or Serenade)
Joseph Stella developed his approach to Modernism after seeing work by the Italian Futurists, whose paintings are characterized by dynamic compositions, repeated forms that indicate movement, and a symbolic use of color. The rhythmic, curling shape in the foreground, the seemingly electrified tree on the left, and the central triangular forms that move diagonally back in space suggest the energy and power of nature. The abstract shapes and emotive, moody colors also resemble work by French Symbolist artist the Odilon Redon, whose work Stella admired in Paris and at the Armory Show in 1913.
The work of the Futurists may have particularly appealed to Stella because he, too, was Italian. After immigrating to the United States in 1896, he returned to Italy and France from 1909 until 1912 to study art. Once back in the United States, he began interpreting his subjects in a Cubist-Futurist style.
The work of the Futurists may have particularly appealed to Stella because he, too, was Italian. After immigrating to the United States in 1896, he returned to Italy and France from 1909 until 1912 to study art. Once back in the United States, he began interpreting his subjects in a Cubist-Futurist style.
