Bars of Light
(1854-1932)
It's no surprise that Palmer was named "the painter of American winter." Indeed his best and most acclaimed paintings were his winter scenes. In Bars of Light, the green and russet-brown trees cast long blue shadows on the snow, which stretch across the open foreground. Using watercolor and gouache, Palmer renders this scene with loose transparent scumbles for the foliage as well as with thicker passage of opaque paint to capture the chunky snow.
Walter Launt Palmer's paintings, particularly of winter, are widely collected. His consummate skill and commitment to his art earned him high standing during the height of his career. But like so many artists of his generation, his contribution to American art history was eclipsed by the advent of Modernism. Over the past 10 years his reputation was fully rehabilitated and his paintings commanded high numbers both at auction and privately. We have had the opportunity to place some of Palmer's best work in important collections.
