She Paints Landscapes: Why the Art of Jackie Langford Matters

By Meghan E. Gattignolo 

When you think of your favorite painting, is it a portrait of a pensive face? Or, do you see flowers floating on water, maybe a bridge, or some trees? Humans are hard-wired to love faces, but most art lovers know the worth of a good landscape. 

More than a simple recreation of a green space, a talented artist can make you feel a significant impact while enjoying their work. Maybe it’s in the subtle way the light dapples the ground in a painting of a shady grove, or the softness of the flower petals in a country garden, but textures and shapes can unlock a core memory nearly forgotten…and you’re lost. 

Acclaimed artist Jackie Langford is a Clarksville treasure whose work continues to color the local art scene after years of triumphs. Her affinity for oils and watercolors provides an avenue to capture the rugged beauty of nature that she cherishes in her landscapes, now on exhibit at the Customs House Museum & Cultural Center.

Langford studied art with T. Max Hochstetler – another celebrated Clarksville artist who taught at Austin Peay State University for many years. Langford has won recognition and admiration for her work both in Clarksville and beyond. Her pieces can be found among national collections, such as the George H. W. Bush Presidential Library Collection and the Permanent Army Military Art Collection, as well as many other museums and private collections around the country. 

But if you thought landscapes were only fit for your grandparents’ living room, think again. Landscapes are powerful motivators for appreciating the natural world, as they capture a moment in time and inspire even more creativity from the viewer.

Jackie Langford, Rotary Park I from the Clarksville Series, Oil. Photo by Myranda Harrison.

Reconnects People to Nature

The popularity of landscapes in the art world really took off during the Romantic Movement of the 19th century. The Romantics directly responded to how human culture appeared to be changing. They were uncomfortable with the overly logical intellectuals produced by the Enlightenment, and the materialistic Industrial Revolution. The work of the Romantics was to reconnect people to their raw emotions and the natural world, the sentiment and feeling of a place rather than art based on realism in the traditional sense. 

The Romantic Movement pervaded not only literature and music, but also art. Landscapes by Caspar David Friedrich are some of the best examples of how artists can capture the sheer power and beauty of nature while also inviting an audience to feel the strong emotions associated with experiencing those wild places in person. 

Langford’s paintings have a strong emotional connection to natural places the artist knows well. The attention to detail is a loving display of her relationship to the outdoors. Viewers from Clarksville will recognize Langford’s paintings of Rotary Park through the various seasons. The exhibit includes oil paintings from the artist’s Alaska Series, Clarksville Series, Colorado Series, Grand Canyon & Yellowstone Series, Parks Series, and Tellico Series.

Jackie Langford’s exhibit in Orgain Gallery. Pictured is part of the Clarksville Series. Photo by Myranda Harrison.

Captures a Moment in Time and Space

As we know, the world is constantly changing. Empty fields quickly become new housing developments or retail spaces. Landscape painting not only captures the beauty of a place as it is right now and preserves that visually for future generations, but landscapes also make evident how the artist feels about that place. 

From the artist’s perspective, sitting in the space while painting does a world of good for finding peace and fully enjoying the landscape being painted. Many artists do enjoy what’s called plein air painting- another gift of the 19th century – and it refers to the practice of painting an entire piece outside. 

Regardless of technique, taking the time to paint imbues a work with emotion and enhances the image of the landscape. Sure, snapping a picture on a phone camera is quicker, but a photo doesn’t always capture the raw emotion of the artist’s perspective in the moment. 

Langford’s work expresses the emotions involved and the significance of each place depicted in her pieces. The tumultuous water in the white-water rafting scenes creates a sense of urgency and power, just as the canyons reveal vast spaciousness in Langford’s Western landscapes.

 More of Jackie Langford’s exhibit in Bruner Gallery. Pictured is part of the Grand Canyon & Yellowstone Series. Photo by Myranda Harrison.

Inspires with the Sublime

Nature is humanity’s connection to the universe and all the mysteries it conceals. We can touch grass and smell the flowers, but we can’t reach the stars or plumb the depths of the deepest ocean. The ghostly glow of the full moon or the majesty of a wave breaking on the shore is easier to digest through the stroke of a paintbrush. Landscapes give us a way to more thoroughly examine the natural world and try to contemplate its secrets.

For some, observing and interacting with nature is a way to understand the spiritual world, too. Sublime is another word the Romantics used when they tried to describe a certain dignity in nature the artists of the time attempted to capture in their work.  

Nature is sublime because it wasn’t made by human hands, but by something less explainable and it has to be felt. An artist like Langford can express that otherworldly quality in their unique approach to landscape art.

See Landscape Memories: Where My Heart Is, The Art of Jackie Langford – still available to enjoy until February 23rd, in the Orgain and Bruner galleries at the Customs House Museum & Cultural Center. 

Jackie Langford. Glen Canyon in the Grand Canyon & Yellowstone Series. Oil. Photo by Myranda Harrison.


Resources:

https://www.jackielangford.com/about

https://www.outdoorpainter.com/painting-landscapes-why-the-process-is-so-important/

https://www.markmitchellpaintings.com/blog/why-do-we-love-the-landscape/


Meghan E. Gattignolo is a freelance writer and longtime Clarksville, TN resident. She loves to obsess about historical subjects and annoy her family daily with unsolicited random facts. Meghan holds a History B.A. from Austin Peay State University and lives in town with her husband and two children. 

Back to Blog