Icon Nation Self

In the early 1900s, painters in the Americas began to emphasize their individual responses to nature and the beauty of the land. They painted places they knew and understood well, expressing a deep sense of belonging through their art. In pursuing the essential truth of being through painting, many artists gave their own memories and lived experiences precedence over observable details. Their unique visions, expressed in the bold, simplified language of modernist art, in time came to stand for the spirit of the nations they painted.