Josef Navrátil (1798-1865)

LANDSCAPE BEFORE THE STORM

1850`s
Navrátil`s gouache miniature landscapes - often of similar format and adjustment, so that impressive groupings could be created from them - became a sought-after painting specialty in their time. In hundreds of cabinet-sized views of the Alpine mountains, their valleys, and rapidly changing weather, there is a lot of virtuoso brushwork and an extraordinary sense of color, light, and atmosphere. They are characterized, among other things, by a rococo, sweet pastel coloration of watercolor pink, light green, and silver-blue valerian, with which the painter was able to capture the mood and character of nature at dawn and during storms, the lightness of clouds, as well as the sheen of water surfaces. Navrátil found his subjects both in graphic templates and on his frequent travels, constantly varying and paraphrasing them with tireless charm and astonishing inventiveness and imagination. Gouache on paper, 21 x 26 cm, signed lower right "Jos. Navrátil". Framed, glazed.