Pines on the Shore - Georges Lacombe

A striking example of Nabis art, this work by Georges Lacombe features elongated pine trees and a non-naturalistic palette, emphasising decorative form over realism.

Georges Lacombe, a member of the Nabis group, produced this work during his time in Brittany. The Nabis sought to move beyond the literal representation of nature, favouring instead the expression of subjective emotion through simplified forms and flat areas of colour. In this composition, the pine trees are rendered with elongated, rhythmic trunks that dominate the vertical space. The artist employs a non-naturalistic palette, where the sky is a muted, ochre-toned yellow and the foliage is reduced to deep, dark masses of blue and green.

The foreground features rocky, uneven terrain, depicted with simplified contours that echo the sinuous lines of the trees. Lacombe avoids traditional perspective, opting for a decorative arrangement that emphasises the two-dimensional surface of the canvas. The influence of Japanese woodblock prints is evident in the bold outlines and the deliberate cropping of the scene. By stripping away extraneous detail, Lacombe focuses on the essential character of the coastal environment. The work reflects the Nabis interest in synthesising observation with personal vision, creating a scene that feels both grounded in a specific location and detached from reality. The deliberate use of colour creates a sombre, contemplative mood, characteristic of the artist's output during the 1890s. This print captures the stylistic experimentation of the period, offering a clear example of how the Nabis reinterpreted the natural world through a lens of abstraction and decorative design.