Description
A Summer Landscape is a painting by Georges Seurat from 1883: a wide summer field of tall grass with a single tiny dark figure in the middle, a tall dark tree on the horizon at left and, behind it, a low row of houses under a grey, restless sky. The original, oil paint on wood, measures just 25.08 x 15.88 cm and is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington under number 2014.18.52. We make it as a canvas painting, painted by hand in oils, in eight sizes or to your own measurements; before dispatch you receive a photograph of the finished work for approval.
| Title: | A Summer Landscape |
| Other titles: | A Summer Landscape – the title the museum itself uses |
| Painter: | Georges Seurat (1859–1891) |
| Year painted: | 1883 |
| Original size: | 25.08 cm x 15.88 cm |
| Original technique: | Oil on wood |
| Painting style: | Quick, loose, criss-crossing brushstrokes in a thin layer of paint |
| Located at: | National Gallery of Art, Washington (inv. no. 2014.18.52) |
| Our reproduction: | hand-painted oil on canvas, 8 sizes from 25 x 16 cm to 150 x 100 cm, custom size on request |
A Summer Landscape – Georges Seurat
What does the painting show?
A summer field with one single person in it. Almost the whole lower part of the painting is grass, painted in green strokes among which light, bluish and white patches appear here and there, perhaps flowers. On the right the field rises into a tall band of golden-yellow grass or grain that reaches almost to the sky. Left of centre stands a tiny dark figure in clothes with reddish tints; it is so small that the photograph does not show whether it faces us or away. At lower left there are pinkish-ochre patches on the ground that could be a path or bare earth. Along the low horizon runs a line of houses with light walls and reddish roofs, with dark bushes between them. At the left edge a tall, narrow, dark, cone-shaped tree rises above the horizon, reminiscent of a cypress. Over everything spreads a wide sky in grey, bluish and pink strokes, taking up almost half the painting.
What is on the panel?
A small horizontal wooden panel, just over 25 cm wide and just under 16 cm high, as the museum record states. The paint is laid on thinly, in loose, criss-crossing strokes that mostly rise vertically or diagonally in the grass and run horizontally in the sky. In the sky a warmer, brownish ground shows between the strokes, looking like wood seen through thin paint. The strokes are not dots: they are broader, of different lengths and quickly placed, so the surface looks fresh and lively. The colour of the photograph we work from may differ slightly from the original, which is why we describe above all the subject and how the painting is built. The museum record lists no inscription on the panel.
Why does this painting matter?
Because it says a great deal in a small format. On a panel smaller than a sheet of paper, the French painter Georges Seurat sets down a whole landscape: field, horizon, tree, houses, sky and a person who gives it scale. The figure is tiny, yet it is what tells you how wide the field is and how far away the houses are. Anyone expecting the pointillism of even dots from Seurat will see something else here: quick, loose strokes laid one over another. For a buyer it is a fresh, simple and direct Seurat, free of any story, that fits easily into any room.
What does the painting mean?
The stillness and breadth of a summer day. Nothing happens in the painting: a person stands in the grass, a tree stands on the horizon, the sky drifts slowly. The museum record neither explains the scene nor names the place, so neither do we. The painting invites the eye to wander from the green foreground over the golden grass to the light houses and back to the figure. At home it feels calm and bright; its green, golden and grey tones go well with wood, linen, white walls and plants.
What place does it have among Seurat’s works?
The museum record dates it to 1883 and attributes it to Georges Seurat. The same gallery in Washington also holds the original of Peasant with a Hoe, which you can view on the gallery’s website. Among the country subjects we offer are also Landscape in the Île-de-France, whose original is in the Musée des Beaux-Arts in Bordeaux on deposit from the Musée d’Orsay, and Clothes on the Grass, held by Tate in London. Beside them, A Summer Landscape shows the countryside at its simplest: a field, the sky and a single figure.
How is our hand-painted version made?
With a brush and oil paint, never with a printer. Our painter works from an image of the original and keeps what makes this panel special: the quick, loose strokes, the thin paint, and the balance between the green foreground, the golden band of grass and the wide sky. A pointillist technique with even, round dots would be the wrong choice here, because the original has no such dots. We take particular care with the tiny figure, which must stay small and dark, and with the dark tree at the left edge, which balances the painting. Because everything is done by hand, no two canvases are ever quite the same, and every hand-painted copy is one of a kind. We have no photographs of our own of a finished canvas of this subject yet; when we first paint it, we will photograph it and publish the photographs here.
Which size for which wall?
If you are not sure which to choose, take 60 x 40 cm. Closest to the original is our smallest size, 25 x 16 cm: the original measures 25.08 x 15.88 cm, and ours is 0.08 cm narrower and 0.12 cm taller. The format is horizontal, so it fits above a narrow chest of drawers, above a bed or in a group of smaller works. 50 x 30 and 60 x 40 cm are the most popular choices for a hallway or bedroom; 70 x 45 and 80 x 50 cm hold their own above a desk; 90 x 60 cm is the size for a living room, while 120 x 75 and 150 x 100 cm turn the small panel into a large summer painting in which the field becomes almost a window onto the landscape. Every oil painting reproduction of this subject is made to order.
Custom size, stretcher bar and frame
If none of the eight sizes suits your wall, we paint to your measurements and keep the proportions of the original, so that the horizon, the tree and the figure stay in their places; that is our custom size painting service. Every canvas arrives stretched on a wooden stretcher bar, ready to hang. You choose a frame in our 3D app, which shows gold, silver, black, white and wooden profiles on this subject; the app is for choosing the frame only. For a preview of the painting on your own wall, there is our separate room-visualisation service.
Delivery and guarantee
We paint each canvas to order in our studio in Slovenia, so allow 15 to 45 days depending on the size. It is shipped stretched, protected for transport and framed if you wish, within Slovenia and across the EU with no customs duty. Before dispatch you receive a photograph of the finished work for approval, and our returns policy applies to every order. All of Seurat’s subjects are in the Georges Seurat gallery, and our article about Georges Seurat explains when a fine art reproduction of a famous painting is truly good.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the original?
In the National Gallery of Art in Washington, under number 2014.18.52. The museum lists it with the credit line Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon.
Who is the figure in the middle of the field?
The museum record does not name it. In the painting it is a tiny dark figure in clothes with reddish tints, standing alone in the tall grass.
What kind of tree stands at the left edge?
A tall, narrow, dark, cone-shaped tree reminiscent of a cypress. The museum record does not give the species.
Is this a print?
No. It is hand-painted oil on canvas; the brushstrokes are visible and can be felt.
Which size should I choose?
For a hallway or bedroom, 60 x 40 cm; for the size closest to the original, 25 x 16 cm. The detailed guide is above.
Can I have a size that is not on the list?
Yes. We paint to measure and keep the side ratio of the original.
Is this neo-impressionism?
The museum record does not assign the painting to a movement, so neither do we. What is visible is quick, loose strokes in a thin layer of paint, not dots.
Is the original really that small?
Yes. According to the museum record it measures 15.88 x 25.08 cm (height x width), so it is smaller than a sheet of A4 paper.
Is the original for sale?
No. The panel belongs to the museum’s public collection in Washington and is not for sale; we can paint its subject by hand for your home.
How high should I hang it?
With its centre at eye level, about 145–150 cm from the floor; hang the smaller sizes lower, nearer to where you sit.
Is it a good gift?
Yes, especially for someone who loves nature and peaceful landscapes. If you would rather leave the choice to the recipient, there is our gift voucher.
- Subject: a summer field of tall grass, a tiny solitary figure, a dark tree and low houses on the horizon – 1883
- Original: 25.08 x 15.88 cm, oil paint on wood, National Gallery of Art, Washington (inv. no. 2014.18.52)
- Ours: hand-painted, eight sizes from 25 x 16 to 150 x 100 cm, always stretched, framed on request
- Worth knowing: the original is smaller than a sheet of paper, yet it holds a whole landscape with horizon, tree, houses and a person
