James P. Bulter, Catatonk Pond, 1917. Oil on canvas. Gift of Richard Faletti, Faletti Family Collection, 2004-5-1
Pond: Look at the lines and color used to draw the pond in this painting.
Clouds: Look at the lines and color used to draw the clouds in this painting.
Trees: Look at the lines and color used to draw the trees in this painting.
Hills: Look at the lines and color used to draw the hills in this painting.
Resource

Guiding Questions:

  • How would you describe the lines in the trees, the clouds, the hills, and the water? What are the movements in this painting?
  • Let’s take a closer look at the colors, which are more realistic and which are more dreamlike?
  • Is this a place you would like to visit? Tell us more.

Butler’s grandfather was Claude Monet, a very famous Impressionist painter. Butler was a part of a group of artists called the Fauvists. In French, “fauve” means wild beasts. Fauve artists painted everyday things like people, places, and animals using wild brushstrokes and exciting colors. Butler visited Catatonk Pond in New York and decided to paint it. In this painting, Butler expressed how he felt about the place through exciting colors. The different types of brush strokes added power to this artwork.