The Open Door

Essay written by Raphaël Chatroux, 2023 

Burchfield’s work from the 1950s reintroduces many of the elements found in his earlier compositions, especially those from 1917–his self-proclaimed ‘Golden Year’–that capture nature’s mystery and mysticism, its changing moods and inherent spirituality. 

The present work is a view of and through the Artist’s studio door at 3574 Clinton Street, Gardenville, New York, where he had moved in 1925. At the time the painting was created, the studio was still standing, located at the very back of a deep, narrow garden, which the artist represented several times, and to which the studio would eventually be connected in 1959-1960 to provide more space. While The Open Door does not as strongly emphasize the fantastical side of nature as do other contemporary works by the artist, its palpable serenity evokes Burchfield’s quaint childhood in Salem, Ohio, and gives the artist’s studio the role of a safe haven. As Burchfield confirmed himself in 1933: “Let my studio be hallowed by large adventurous thoughts; and a feeling of security and isolation from the banalities of life; by dreams, and bold imaginings.” 

The Open Door is a particularly intimate work that permits us entry into the sanctuary from which Burchfield made his lyrical landscapes. “I’ve painted almost everything you can see from the studio windows,” Burchfield acknowledged in 1953. The work is even more special as it conveys Burchfield’s deep regard towards nature as an inspiring, liberating agent. Indeed, while most of the studio is captured in dark tonalities (even the still life at upper left seems to gently fade and lose its coloring), the outside is bursting with life and replete with vibrant colors. Dapples of green, yellow, and blues prevail, and are magically reflected into the glass of the open door. The work playfully, and very intelligently, invites the viewer to step outside and progress through the several layers that are the main door, the screen door, and the porch. It almost becomes a metaphor for the artist’s creative and working process, a modern rendition of Plato’s cave myth: from the shadows of the studio that represent the creator’s mind, the artist steps out in the light to experience and represent the world. He is lured, but also saved, by the beautiful, safe nature which awaits him.

Burchfield painted his studio several other times, mostly from different vantage points, either outside or inside. A very similar watercolor, executed in 1963, shows the exact same view but with a fall landscape, thus confirming the artist’s obsession with this gateway between two worlds. Burchfield was in fact so aware of the significance of his studio that he confessed: “One of my ambitions is some day to collect all of the pictures again. Then I would have an exhibit called ‘From My Backyard.’” While the show was never organized, the present piece offers us a unique experience to feel Burchfield’s presence. 

–Raphaël Chatroux, Specialist, Fine Art

(https://www.freemansauction.com/auctions/american-art-and-pennsylvania-impressionists-1792/lot/38)

The Open Door, 1954 (top left)

The Doorway, 1929 (top right)

Pussy Willow, 1936 (bottom left)

October Outside, 1963 (bottom right)