MY VIEW
Burchfield teaches us to see beauty in world
Rome has Michelangelo, London has Turner and Western New York has Charles Burchfield. These are master painters who somehow transcend the limits of time and place and speak quite clearly to people of all ages.
If you aren’t familiar with CB (as he signed his work) you are about to get to know him as the new Burchfield Penney Art Center prepares to open this month on Elmwood Avenue.
Charles Burchfield would probably be stunned by the recognition. Although a native of Ohio, he spent most of his adult life in Western New York, first as a wallpaper designer, and then as a painter and teacher at Buffalo State College.
More than this, Burchfield is a guide who can teach all of us about the beauty of the world that
we see every day and rarely notice. If you want to get know the man behind the brush, here a few suggestions:
• Read his journals. It is always a good idea to look at an artist’s journals to get a sense of what he is thinking about as he sets about his work. Burchfield’s are a gold-mine because he was a fine writer. He was able to capture the many moods of nature even in his suburban West Seneca neighborhood.
On June 29, 1959, Burchfield described his enjoyment of a thunderstorm when he wrote: “I have never seen lightning colored like this was tonight. It was brilliant pink . . .” Notice how he captures the fine details, which later show up in his paintings.
• Place him in the context of American men and women of letters. He is an intellectual descendant of Henry David Thoreau not only in his love of nature, but his recognition that nature is an organic relationship. It is living and growing. We must be open to it. Burchfield embraced this relationship as the subject of his painting and the philosophical foundation of his life.
• Visit The Burchfield Nature Park in West Seneca. You will surely bump into Charles’ spirit as you wander through the trails looking at his paintings and some of the wonderful places he painted. You will feel as he did when he wrote about “Countless butterflies sipping honey — the butterfly dance come true.”
There is magic in the air and in the light. Burchfield painted the magic and taught us to see the variations of the light. The Nature Park is a museum as unique as the man to whom it is dedicated.
• Adopt a Burchfield painting. I take his “Orion in Winter” with me everywhere in my imagination. It marks the coming of the season. Burchfield’s painting captures the subtle joy of looking at the sky and recognizing a constellation as people have done for centuries. It will illuminate your world during the cold months ahead.
• Share the love. Burchfield’s work surrounds us in beauty and shows us how to see the beauty in the simple things: a tree, a weed, an insect.
In the end, the secret to happiness is to live in the present moment, for it is there that we truly exist.
Charles Burchfield spent his life living in and documenting those moments. He not only shows us what is right in front of our eyes, he opens our eyes to light and life. And for this, Burchfield deserves to transcend the label of regional artist. He speaks to America in the way Walt Whitman or John Steinbeck does. He paints with light, and he teaches us to see.
Log into MyBuffalo to post a comment
MyBuffalo is the new social network from Buffalo.com. Your MyBuffalo account lets you comment on and rate stories at buffalonews.com. You can also head over to mybuffalo.com to share your blog posts, stories, photos, and videos with the community. Join now or learn more.
Reader comments
Learn more about our moderation system.