Hammershøi and the Life of Interiors

New Year and a fantastic new start to the Horsham Arts Society year 2024!  After the storm, the flood and the snow, we gathered on a bright sunny day on 10 January at The Capitol Theatre, glad to be in each other’s company again after the festive break.  

We were treated to a most fascinating lecture by Dr Kathy McLauchlan on a lesser known Danish artist Vilhelm Hammershøi (1864-1916) who bucked the trend of the time for vibrant colours and opulent interiors and developed his own style of portraying the interior space in an almost monochrome palette.  Dr McLauchlan illustrated the early influence of the young artist and his discovery of the Flemish masters such as Vermeer as well as the contemporary artists across Europe.  The artistic style of Hammershøi is certainly unique which at times had been described as “odd”!  However, once you become acquainted with his work, you will never forget the haunting beauty and mesmerising impact on your senses; the evocative empty spaces, often with a single female figure, shaped only by subtle lines embedded in light and shadows!  It is the very abstract spaces that invite us to reflect and meditate … that surely is where Hammershøi has triumphed!