1945 Oil Painting by Marcell Wernegreen Jensen

Danish artist Marcell Wernegreen Jensen (1911-1985) worked with a range of subject matter, including countryside landscapes and tranquil scenes with figures of humans and animals.

In this oil on canvas, the use of primary colours to depict the figure, combined with the use of dramatic light and shadow, immediately draws our eye to the sitter of the painting. These bold shadows and the exploration of how light is expressed through paint is a typical hallmark of work by the artist, who often used the technique to emphasise the mood of a scene.

The distinctive composition of predominantly horizontal lines give the painting structure and the artist has created a frame around a shaded green space. This framing effect draws our eye to focus on this outdoor scene, and invites us to contemplate whether it is a view from a window, or a painting within the painting.