Springtime

Springtime of 1904 belongs to Steer's series of seasonal landscape subjects—a venerable tradition stretching from medieval calendar illustrations through Botticelli's Primavera to the Impressionists' sustained attention to seasonal transformation. Spring offered the pale fresh greens and blossom whites that differ in quality from deeper summer greens or the warm ochres of autumn. Birmingham Museums Trust holds this work alongside other Steer paintings, reflecting the city's sustained engagement with British Impressionism. By 1904 Steer had turned more decisively toward landscape as his primary subject, the figure work of the 1890s giving way to a practice centered on the English countryside. The springtime subject suits his mature approach: the aim is the total impression of a season rather than the scientific dissection of color that characterized his early Pointillist experiments.

Oil on canvas with fluid, confident handling suited to capturing the lightness of early spring foliage before the heavy summer canopy closes. Pale green and yellow-green dominate with white blossom accents.