Old Tree Trunk

An old tree trunk attracted Jiménez Aranda’s attention during his walks in the outskirts of Paris, and he devoted this painting from life to it, in which he represents in extraordinary detail its rough texture, its knots and its twisted forms. In this way, the tree trunk becomes the central focus of the painting in which the atmosphere is created by contrasts between light and shadow. An exquisite exercise, painted from nature, this is an extremely realistic depiction of an old tree trunk in a small clearing in the forest. Presented at the Universal Exposition of Paris in 1889, this work is impressive in its quality, allowing us to almost make out the face and psychology of a personage, with light as its main protagonist. This taste for nature has been identified with the artist's preference for the work of Meissonier and Menzel. Jim