Jeff Thomsen: La valle des cloches (Valley of the Bells)

La valle des cloches (Valley of the Bells), oil on linen painting by Cerulean Arts Collective Member Jeff Thomsen. Included in his solo exhibition January 15 – February 9, 2025. Size: 30″ H x 24″ W; Frame: 31.25″ H x 25.25″ W

This painting is one in series of five paintings based on the five-movement piano suiteMiroirs by Maurice Ravel.

Ravel was supposedly inspired to write this movement from his experience hearing
the midday bells of Paris. For me, however, the music suggests a scene far more bucolic, more akin to the depictions of rural England by the likes of Samual Palmer, JMW Turner,
or English 20th century pastoral artists, such as Eric Ravilious. Certainly not the experience of walking through the caverns of a bustling city.The music is contemplative, similar in character to that ofOiseaux tristes. Thus I wanted a painting that evoked quiet, aside from the deep roll of perhaps mournful bells. For me, the music suggested night, unfolding valleys, an endless sea and sky, and a graveyard, marking a befitting end to the journey.
Jeff Thomsen

Note: Painting will be available for pickup or shipment after the end of exhibition.

To view additional work by Jeff, visit his webpage: Jeff Thomsen