# ID a famous painting for me?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Created:** [December 3, 2012, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821 "2012-12-03T04:39:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 10\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/1 "2012-12-03T04:39:12Z")

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I recently saw a painting hanging in the Impressionist section of the Art Institute of Chicago and I cannot remember what it was called or who painted it. It was a painting of a cabin in the woods at night - the cabin was small, off to the bottom right hand of the painting, which was focused more on the trees. I think it was painted sometime in the late 1800/early 1900s. Any ideas? Sadly, most of my googling only gets me images of Thomas Kinkade 😛 .

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**Author:** ![Peanuthead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peanuthead/32/360_2.png) [@Peanuthead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peanuthead)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/2 "2012-12-03T04:47:14Z")

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Here’s a good place to start your search: [Discover Art & Artists | The Art Institute of Chicago](http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/)

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**Author:** ![NotBob13](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e19b73/32.png) [@NotBob13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotBob13)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/3 "2012-12-03T04:55:11Z")

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you might want to check this artist out. [Collections – Suttons Bay Galleries](http://www.suttonsbaygalleries.com/collections/?id=192&gallery=loc)

It seems he studied and taught at the Institute Right time frame, also.

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**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/4 "2012-12-03T06:17:27Z")

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Was it a [Constable](http://www.tate.org.uk/art/artworks/constable-the-valley-farm-n00327) perhaps? He did a lot of houses amongst trees.

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**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/5 "2012-12-03T06:41:27Z")

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Here’s a possibility: [Thomas Gainsborough](http://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/paintings/features/memory_maps/object.php?action=next&id=72&id2=0&hits=117&page=5&pages=10)

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**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/6 "2012-12-03T06:48:41Z")

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Just realised they’re not Impressionists.

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**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/7 "2012-12-03T07:07:42Z")

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Is this it?

> **[Forest at Martigues | The Art Institute of Chicago](https://www.artic.edu/artworks/8975/forest-at-martigues)**
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> André Derain, 1908

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**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/8 "2012-12-03T12:14:48Z")

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None of the the above, although the link in GuanoLad’s second post (Gainsborough) was closer in appearance and tone. The cabin was _really_ not the focus of the painting, though - off in the corner. And it was actually darker.

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**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/9 "2012-12-03T12:26:59Z")

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[This one](http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/152437?search_no=2&index=17), then?

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**Author:** ![Small\_Hen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ad7895/32.png) [@Small\_Hen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Small_Hen)\
**Post date:** [December 3, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/id-a-famous-painting-for-me/642821/10 "2012-12-03T15:54:44Z")

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> [@GuanoLad](#):
>
> [This one](http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/artwork/152437?search_no=2&index=17), then?

That’s it! Thank you, and thanks to everyone for looking.