The Role of Travel in the Lives of American Artists

"Monterrey Harbor" 11 x 16 oil on linen by Kathryn Mapes Turner

Kathryn paints her view while in Tuscany

I will confess - I love Jackson Hole so much, I find that I am reluctant to ever leave it!  And yet after a recent trip to Paris, I certainly didn’t complain. Only a fool would do that - Paris is fabulous! 

This October, I spent six glorious days visiting museums and churches, cruising the river and strolling the streets and avenues in search of the perfect crepes. It was the ideal vacation after a busy Jackson summer.  

While in Paris, I couldn’t help but think of the other American artists throughout history who, likewise, couldn’t resist a visit to the city known for its art. Elizabeth Jane Gardner, Mary Cassatt, Robert Henri, and Langston Hughes were among the many American artists who traveled across the pond to study and work in the City of Lights.  Not surprising, many became expatriates. 

"Enlightened" 24 x 18 oil & cold wax on mounted linen by

Jennifer Hoffman.

Artists are certainly not unique in a love for adventure, but it does have a profound influence on the creative process.  When we encounter the exotic, we are jarred loose from the mundane and see the world anew.  When German artist, Carl Rungius traveled from the Old World to the New, he was forever captivated by the western mountains he rendered. “I painted from the collected material and later in the spring of 1896, I went back to Germany... My decision to cut all ties with the Old World and to live in America for good, was due in no small part to this first Wyoming trip. For my heart was in the West.”

Travelers encounter new sights, sounds, and flavors, and as artists, this stimulation of the senses is important for creativity.  Despite jet-lag, my first day in Paris drew me out of the hotel and onto the streets where Parisians were making the most of a sunny Sunday afternoon. The music from the street performers, the smell of roasting chestnuts and the sight of lovers beside the river all stay with me like a living postcard memory. 

Bill Sawczuk & RMPAP founding artists Greg McHuron
at the first Rimrock Ranch Artists Retreat

When Jennifer Hoffman recently visited Hawaii, she was so inspired by the full moon shining on the ocean waves, she asked her husband to stop the car so she could study the light effects on the surface of the water long enough to commit the scene to memory.  She made this sketch of it as soon as she returned to Jackson Hole.

 Exposure to different cultures opens new pathways of relating to the world. When I studied the masterpieces in the Louvre and Muse D’Orsay, expectations for my own work were up-leveled. 

Travel affords artists the opportunity to meet new people and have  experiences that shift our understanding.  We encounter a more global perspective and our place in the context of the world.

"Sienna" 10 x 8 oil by Kathryn Mapes Turner

Another advantage of travel is the opportunity to shed the daily distractions of home.  When Georgia O’Keefe traveled to New Mexico, she was also delighted to be free of her social obligations in the East and to have the quiet solitude to focus on art. Bill Sawczuk has the same experience during his annual art retreat at the Rim Rock Ranch outside of Cody, Wyoming.
 
Travel is not without its limitations for artists. Travel can be exhausting… especially when you are lugging around art equipment.  The logistics of travel can be a distraction in and of itself. There can be a lack of depth of understanding of a foreign subject matter.  Not all artists benefit from the disruption of stylistic continuity. Non-artist travel companions are not always willing to understand why, at a museum,  we can stand in front of a single painting for 20 minutes or spend two hours sketching a gargoyle.  

My trip to Paris was a perfect one- wonderful weather, no crowds, fabulous itinerary!  And still, I was happy to return home… with a full heart and renewed inspiration… to my beloved Wyoming.

Kathryn meeting the "locals" in Paris!

Kathryn Mapes Turner

"The Role of Travel in the Lives of American Artists"

Behind the Brushes