Eesti kunsti oksjonid

Oil on masonite. 1950s-60s.
Signature: John Saarniit

“The pulse is pounding
the heart is pounding:
spring, spring!“

Doris Kareva

The early spring landscapes of Joann Saarniit (1909-1984) beckon the viewer with the crisp freshness of spring. So vividly has he conveyed the excitement and anticipation that accompany this time of year. The artist knows exactly how to capture the special light of the sun that shines intensely in March and April as it is neither mild like summer nor golden like autumn but icy warm.

To convey this apparent contradiction, Saarniit uses nature’s own tools – he simultaneously paints both the snow that still stubbornly covers the plants and the fast-flowing river water that has already been freed from the ice, both the winter-hardened trees and the greenery that speaks of the coming storm of nature.

Text: Katre Palm