(Michigan Dunes)

Artist Tunis Ponsen (American, 1891-1968)

Dateca. 1928-1940

Mediumoil on canvas

Dimensionsframe: 30 5/8 × 38 3/4 in. (77.8 × 98.4 cm)
canvas: 28 3/16 × 36 in. (71.6 × 91.4 cm)

Credit LineGift of Angenita J. Morris

Exhibition HistoryOn loan to the Krasl Art Museum (May 12, 1997 - Aug. 26, 1998). "Perspectives on Place: Artists’ Visions of Michigan's Land and Lakes," KIA (June 6 - Sept. 7, 2008). Label TextTunis Ponsen's traditional training with emphasis on drawing is evident in the strong contour lines he uses to define the bare, craggy branches. A line of grey brush traces the horizon and outlines the shifting sand forms along Lake Michigan's Dunes. Drawn to Muskegon by the Dutch community, Ponsen's family immigrated to Michigan in 1914. Even after moving to Chicago in 1924, Ponsen returned frequently to visit family and to paint the Michigan landscape. Intensely private, Ponsen felt that painting what he saw was more important than interpreting the scene through a personal, expressionistic lens. Study at the Art Institute of Chicago and an appreciation for the Dutch landscape tradition reinforced his adherence to a realistic vision and muted color palette.

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