Kamp (1867-1959) has been called an American Impressionist. “I dashed the paint on thickly” she wrote in her diary of 1937. Her oil sketches completed outdoors, en plein aire, show loose, bold strokes and the sure suggestion of a leaf or limb. Americans embraced Impressionism in the late 19th century after the French, when the relaxed flowing strokes were no longer considered a revolutionary style of painting. Impressionism has since taken its place in the annals of American art. Kamp preferred the thick, loose style of her quick oil sketches. They captured the essence of a scene in high color and visible brushstrokes which fused to portray beauty and luminosity. The artist’s larger works on canvas are polished and smooth with specific attention to realistic detail.
