Artwork
Screen: "Porcupines" and "Nightmare"
Screen: "Porcupines" and "Nightmare" is an oil painting by the American Folk Art artist Robert Winthrop Chanler. It dates from 1914 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Overview
Robert Winthrop Chanler’s 1914 oil work, titled *Screen: “Porcupines” and “Nightmare,”* presents a densely wooded tableau populated by porcupines. The composition is rendered on a screen format, allowing the painted scene to function both as a decorative panel and as a narrative image that evokes a tangled, nocturnal forest environment.
Subject & Meaning
The central figures are a cluster of porcupines whose spines radiate in varied directions, some rendered in stark black, others in muted brown tones. The surrounding foliage is suggested through rough bark and shadowed branches, creating a sense of untamed wilderness that hints at both the animal’s defensive posture and the unsettling atmosphere implied by the title’s reference to a nightmare.
Technique & Style
Chanler employs a vigorous, impasto application of oil, building up thick layers to convey the tactile quality of quills and fur. Broad, forceful brushstrokes define the texture of the forest backdrop, while a limited palette of earth tones—deep browns, blacks, and occasional highlights—reinforces the work’s moody, rustic character, aligning it with decorative folk traditions.
History & Provenance
Educated at the École des Beaux‑Arts in France, Chanler returned to the United States where his participation in the 1913 Armory Show elevated his profile. The screen, created shortly thereafter, reflects his interest in ornamental design and American folk motifs, a direction that resonated with collectors of decorative arts during the early twentieth century.
Artist & collection
Artist
Robert Winthrop Chanler (February 22, 1872 – October 24, 1930) was an American artist.
