This is an excursion into arborial imagery of the Renaissance and Baroque, in works primarily by Northern European artists and also by select Italians. The British nineteenth century makes an appearance, with Ruskin and Turner among others, and references to more recent authors are sprinkled throughout. The ten chapters take the reader from the minutely observed and identifiable flora of Jan van Eyck to luminous sunsets by Claude that lead into Turner, whose bequest to the Tate stipulated that his own paintings were to hang next to those of the French painter. Along the way, the author effectively leads the reader on two paths of viewing and traveling through forests and hillsides.
The first is the lineage traced from Homer, Virgil, and Ovid to Titian, Pieter Bruegel, his son Jan, and Rubens. Although it is not always explicit in the works discussed, it is apparent that these artists (as well as others) took their inspiration from antiquity. This is evident not only in their subjects, often including mythological figures, but also in their consideration of the land as a place to take pleasure and repose. The places and remains of antiquity, most obviously Tivoli with the temple of the sibyl and gardens, figure importantly in this lineage.
The second path is a more localized one, involving direct observation in the Northern landscape, often with the presence of industry and built structures. Albrecht Dürer's grand watercolors of the linden are interpreted in light of that tree as a symbol of Germanic culture, in lore and custom (35). The blasted tree is a powerful presence in Northern art, and may be variously interpreted. In Dürer's Adoration of the Trinity (The Landauer Altarpiece), the artist positioned his self-portrait between the stump, representing the Old Testament, and the verdant summer lime tree, indicating the New Testament (40). Jacob van Ruisdael's juxtaposition of the blasted tree with the leafy limbs of flourishing trees offers a metaphor to human life (72). The comparison of man to tree extends to the Book of Psalms and Christian imagery (72). And it extends to William Cowper's 1791 poetical conceit of noble trees as metaphors for men and women living through stages of their lives (77). Roelant Savery's Hollow Oak contrasts the aging tree with its new shoots, and also features the gaping mouth of a howl; this opens the discussion to anthropomorphism seen in trees.
The literary relationship of man to nature is explored on several levels. Virgil sets up the opposition between the cowherd Meliboeus, who is likened to an oak, and the shepherd Tityrus, who is compared to a willow; the strong and stiff contrast with the pliable and soft, which are analogous to the characters of anxious Meliboeus and carefree Tityrus (21). These qualities are paralleled in the art of woodcarvers of the Renaissance. The hard oak and walnut were used by sculptors in Burgundy, who favored sharp and severe forms. The soft wood of the linden, also called limewood, was used by sculptors of the Upper Rhine and Franconia; this wood encouraged graceful and soft forms, as found in the works by Veit Stoss. These woods and their products have a gendered nature, as oak is masculine and limewood feminine (35).
The manifold types and practical uses of trees are explored in the writings of John Evelyn and others (14; 51). Poetically, Ovid explained the origins of the laurel, with Daphne, and the poplar, with Phaeton's sisters; similarly, Orpheus charmed the animals while mourning Eurydice with lyrical music. Chapter 10 focuses on rivers and their banks, with examples of Pan chasing Syrinx, who transforms into reeds, and Brueghel's allegory of water (117). The crafted vista affected the copse and views from country houses, thus creating curated views offering variety and surprise for the enjoyment of the fortunate.
This wide-ranging study has topical interest for the ecology of the earth, and its interpretation over the long term.
