Winter Landscape

Painted in late 1889, Theodore Robinson’s Winter Landscape offers a glimpse of the rural village of Giverny, in Normandy, France, under a thin blanket of early snow. This work is one of several panoramic views near Giverny by Robinson. He usually pictured Giverny in the rich greens of summertime, and Winter Landscape is a rare treatment of the setting in the chill of December. The opaque sky is echoed by the flat rectangles of snow-covered roofs nestled against the diagonal of the hillside and clustered in the distance at right. The bare branches of trees and rough, stubble-covered ground, with its patches of snow, are described with vigorous, tactile brushstrokes, resulting in one of Robinson’s most purely impressionist paintings.

Between 1887 and 1892, Robinson spent about half of each year working in Giverny, where French painter Claude Monet (1840–1926), a leader of the impressionist movement, was his friend and mentor. In Giverny, Robinson painted the village, its inhabitants, and the surrounding landscape. Exhibited at the Society of American Artists in New York in 1890, Winter Landscape was awarded the Webb Prize, an award made to the best landscape painting by an artist under the age of forty. This was not only the first honor to come to the thirty-seven-year-old artist, but the first such award made for an impressionist landscape, signaling the gradual acceptance of impressionism in America. Robinson's harnessing of impressionist technique to evoke winter chill appealed to many American critics at a time when they still considered Monet's works too radical.

Twelfth Exhibition of the Society of American Artists, Society of American Artists, New York, New York, 1890, no. 150 (as A Winter Landscape) [awarded the Webb Prize].

Third Annual Exhibition of American Oil Paintings, The Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois, June 9–July 13, 1890, no. 150 (as A Winter Landscape).

Society of American Artists Retrospective Exhibition, Society of American Artists, New York, New York, 1892, no. 268.

World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago, Illinois, May–June 1893, no. 862.

Sixty-Third Annual Exhibition, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 18, 1893–February 24, 1894, no. 2.

American Paintings from the Collection of Daniel J. Terra, Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania (organizer). Venue: Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, June 5–July 17, 1977. [exh. cat.]

American Impressionism, Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington (organizer). Venues: Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, January 3–March 2, 1980; The Frederick S. Wight Gallery, University of Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, March 9-May 4, 1980; Terra Museum of American Art, Evanston, Illinois, May 16–June 22, 1980; The Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, Massachusetts, July 1–August 31, 1980. [exh. cat.]

The Quest for Unity: American Art Between World's Fairs 1876–1893, The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan, August 22–October 30, 1983. [exh. cat.]

Masterworks in American Art from the Daniel J. Terra Collection, Terra Museum of American Art, Evanston, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Evanston, Illinois, April 27–September 12, 1985.

A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, April 21–June 21, 1987. [exh. cat.]

Selections from the Permanent Collection: Americans at Home and Abroad, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, November 6–29, 1987.

An American Revelation: The Daniel J. Terra Collection, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, February 28–October 1, 1988.

American Painters in France, 1830–1930, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, June 14–September 3, 1989. [exh. cat.]

Landschaft im Licht. Impressionistische Malerei in Europa und Nordamerika 1860–1910 (Landscape in Light. Impressionist Painting in Europe and North America 1860–1910), Wallraf-Richartz-Museum Koln, Cologne, German and Kunsthaus Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland (organizer). Venues: Wallraf-Richartz-Museum Koln, Cologne, Germany, April 6–July 1, 1990; Kunsthaus Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland, August 3–October 21, 1990. [exh. cat.]

Impressions de toujours: les peintres américains en France, 1865–1915 (Lasting Impressions: American Painters in France, 1865–1915), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, June 1–November 1, 1992; April 1–October 31, 1993; April 1–October 30, 1994; April 1–October 31, 1995. [exh. cat.]

American Artists and the Paris Experience, 1880–1910, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, November 22, 1997–March 8, 1998.

Giverny: une impression américaine (Giverny, An American Impression), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 1, 1998.

Ville et campagne: les artistes américains, 1870–1920 (The City and the Country: American Perspectives, 1870–1920), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 15, 1999. [exh. cat.]

Première exposition: les carnets de dessins et les photographies de Theodore Robinson (First Exposure: The Sketchbooks and Photographs of Theodore Robinson), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, October 14–December 31, 2000 (in modified form). [exh. cat.]

Giverny au fil des saisons (Giverny in All Seasons), Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venue: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–November 30, 2001.

American Classics: Selections from the Terra Foundation for the Arts, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, January 26–September 1, 2002.

A Place on the Avenue: Terra Museum of American Art Celebrates 15 Years in Chicago, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, November 16, 2002–February 16, 2003 (on exhibit extended run: November 2, 2002–March 2, 2003).

En Plein Air: American Painters in Giverny, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, March 8–May 25, 2003.

American Classics, Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venue: Terra Museum of American Art, Chicago, Illinois, December 13, 2003–February 8, 2004.

In Monet's Light: Theodore Robinson at Giverny, Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, Maryland (organizer). Venues: Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore, Maryland, October 17, 2004–January 9, 2005; Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona, February 4–May 8, 2005; Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art, Hartford, Connecticut, June 4–September 4, 2005. [exh. cat.]

Impressionist Giverny: A Colony of Artists, 1885–1915, Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France (organizer). Venues: Musée d'Art Américain Giverny, France, April 1–July 1, 2007; San Diego Museum of Art, San Diego, CA, July 21–October 14, 2007. [exh. cat.]

Impressionist Giverny: The Americans, 1885-1915, Selections from the Terra Foundation for American Art, Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizer). Venues: Florence Griswold Museum of Art, Old Lyme, Connecticut, May 3–July 27, 2008; Albany Institute of History & Art, Albany, New York, August 23, 2008–January 4, 2009.

Monet and the Artists of Giverny: The Beginning of American Impressionism, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan with the Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois (organizers). Venues: Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, Kitakyushu, Japan, October 9–November 28, 2010; The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, Japan, December 7, 2010–February 17, 2011; The Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art, Okayama, Japan, February 25–April 10, 2011. [exh. cat.]

American Impressionism: a New Vision, 1880–1900 (L'Impressionnisme et les Américains/ Impresionismo Americano (French & Spanish titles), Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, Giverny, France and the Terra Foundation for American Art, Chicago, Illinois in collaboration with the National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh, United Kingdom and the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain (organizers). Venues: Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, Giverny, France, March 28–June 29, 2014; Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh, United Kingdom, July 19–October 19, 2014; Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid, Spain, November 4, 2014–February 1, 2015. [exh. cat.]

The Studio of Nature, 1860-1910: The Terra Collection in Context (L’atelier de la Nature, 1860-1910. Invitation à la Terra Collection). Terra Foundation for American Art with the Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny (organizers). Venue: Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, France, September 12, 2020–January 3, 2021. [exh. cat. in French]

"Journal." Chicago Art Institute Scrapbook 12 (June 21, 1890): 113. Text p. 113.

Campbell, Paul Howard. "Theodore Robinson: A Brief Historical Sketch." Brush and Pencil 4 (September 1899): 288. Text p. 288.

Levy, Florence N. "Theodore Robinson, 1852–1896." Bulletin of The Metropolitan Museum of Art (July 1906): 111–12. Text pp. 111–12.

Baur, John I. H. Theodore Robinson 1853–1896. (exh. cat., The Brooklyn Museum). Brooklyn, New York: The Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, 1946. Cat. no. 264, p. 81.

Johnston, Sona. Theodore Robinson 1852–1896. (exh. cat., Baltimore Museum of Art). Baltimore, Maryland: Baltimore Museum of Art, 1973. Text p. 94; ill. no. 8.

Art News 72 (March 1973): 81. Ill. p. 81 (black & white).

Connoisseur 193 (October 1976): 32. Ill. p. 32 (color).

Driscoll, J. P. American Paintings from the Collection of Daniel J. Terra. (exh. cat., Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University). University Park, Pennsylvania: Museum of Art, The Pennsylvania State University, 1977. Ill. (black & white).

Clark, Eliot. Theodore Robinson: His Life and Art. Chicago: R. H. Love Galleries, 1979. Text p. 7; pl. 3 (color).

Gerdts, William H. American Impressionism. (exh. cat., Henry Art Gallery). Seattle, Washington: Henry Art Gallery, University of Washington, 1980. Text p. 137 (checklist); ill. p. 52 (black & white).

Huntington, David C. The Quest for Unity: American Art Between the World's Fairs, 1876–1893. (exh. cat., The Detroit Institute of Arts). Detroit, Michigan: The Detroit Institute of Arts, 1983. Text pp. 241–42; ill. no. 153, p. 241 (black & white).

Gerdts, William H. American Impressionism. New York: Abbeville Press, 1984. Text p. 70; pl. 58, p. 69 (black & white).

Atkinson, D. Scott et al. A Proud Heritage: Two Centuries of American Art. Edited by Terry A. Neff. (exh. cat., Terra Museum of American Art). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1987. Pl. T-76, p. 185 (color).

Chotner, Deborah, Lisa Peters, and Kathleen Pyne. John Twachtman: Connecticut Landscapes. (exh. cat., National Gallery of Art). Washington, D.C.: National Gallery of Art, 1989. Text p. 75; fig. 4, p. 75 (black & white).

Czymmek, Goetz, ed. Landschaft im Licht, Impressionistische Malerei in Europa und Nordamerika, 1860–1910. (exh. cat., Wallrfa-Richartz-Museum and Kunsthaus Zurich). Koeln, Germany: Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, 1990. Text p. 487 (checklist); ill. no. 66, p. 273 (color).

Gerdts, William H. et al. Lasting Impressions: American Painters in France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text pp. 52, 130, 133, 180; pl. 3, p. 132 (color).

Gerdts, William H. et al. Impressions de toujours: les peintres américains en France, 1865–1915. (exh. cat., Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for the Arts, 1992. Text pp. 52, 130, 133, 180; pl. 3, p. 132 (color).

Revisiting the White City: American Art at the 1893 World's Fair. (exh. cat., National Museum of American Art). Washington, D.C.: National Museum of American Art and National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, 1993. Ill. p. 310 (black & white). 

Gomes, Rosalie. Impressions of Giverny: A Painter's Paradise 1883–1914. San Francisco, California: Pomegranate Artbooks, 1995. Text pp. 55, 113; pl. 35, p. 56 (color).

Theodore Robinson. (exh. cat., Owen Gallery). New York: Owen Gallery, 2000. Text p. 23; fig. 5, p. 23 (color).

Gerdts, William H. American Impressionism. Second edition. New York: Abbeville Press, 2001. Text p. 70; pl. 58, p. 69 (black & white).

Johnston, Sona. "Theodore Robinson at Giverny." American Art Review 16:5 (September-October 2004): 124–33, 175. Ill. p. 128 (color).

Johnston, Sona. In Monet's Light: Theodore Robinson at Giverny. (exh. cat., The Baltimore Museum of Art). Baltimore, Maryland: The Baltimore Museum of Art, 2004. Text no. 8, p. 94; ill. no. 8, p. 94 (color).

Bourguignon, Katherine M. et al. Impressionist Giverny: A Colony of Artists, 1885–1915. (exh. cat. Musée d'Art Américain Giverny). Chicago, Illinois: Terra Foundation for American Art, 2007. Text p. 210 (checklist); ill. pp. 44 (color detail), fig. 10, p. 54 (color), cat. p. 95 (color).

Bourguignon, Katherine M., Shunsuke Kijima and Sanjiro Minamikawa. Monet and the Artists of Giverny: The Beginning of American Impressionism. (exh. cat. Kitakyushu Municipal Museum of Art, The Bunkamura Museum of Art, Tokyo, and The Okayama Prefectural Museum of Art). Fukuoka, Japan: The Nishinippon Shimbun, 2010. Text cat. no. 28, pp. 78 (in Japanese), 183 (in English); ill. p. 78 (color).

Bourguignon, Katherine M. American Impressionism: A New Vision 1880-1900. (exh. cat., Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, National Galleries of Scotland, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza). Giverny, France: Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny, 2014. (English, French and Spanish versions). Text pp. 32, 40; ill. p. 77 (color).

 Bourguignon, Katherine and Valerie Reis. The Studio of Nature, 1860-1910: The Terra Collection in Context. (exh. cat, Terra Foundation for American Art with the Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny). Paris, France: Réunion des musées nationaux, 2020.  Pl. 62, p. 136 (color).