This captivating extraction piece Landscape, 1933, by Arthur Dove, translates the serene scenery of the artist’s new country home town of Newport, Long Island, New York, which he moved to in order to escape the pressures of the city. Dove is one of the first American artists to use abstraction as a primary composition. This charming watercolour and ink on paper expresses Dove’s appreciation for the American landscape and the sense of tranquillity that it brought to him in the 1930s.

Landscape, 1933, is composed of stylised yet organic forms displayed in a delicate symphony. Dewy watercolour shades of ochre and smoky greys alongside burnt orange and green fit organically together on the paper, the watercolours are subdued yet tonal. This work is beautifully forgiving, visible pencil marks beneath the paint gives one an insight into Dove’s problem solving and decision-making process, allowing for a closer relationship with the artist to form through the piece. The flow of the calligraphy pen, with its black ink, reveals a variation in line width which can be used as a vehicle to draw the eye smoothly around the painting, whilst also giving a striking contrast to the dusted colour pallet. Although abstract in nature, natural forms begin to materialise throughout the painting, a leaf and a tree can be spotted, blending in without interruption. This perspective becomes clearer after reading Dove’s diary entry from August 5th, 1942, where the artist expresses his intention to illustrate the "point where abstraction and reality meet" in his work.

Dove is notorious for his landscape abstractions, this piece being a perfect example of the artist capturing the essence of a natural environment, both spiritually and emotionally through abstract shapes and lines. Landscape is delicate but impactful, a true insight into Dove’s early abstractions and artistic journey, and an emotional response to the serene American land that bought Dove bliss in the 1930s.