Southern Representation Artifact

This painting is by Butler Brown. Brown is from my hometown, Hawkinsville, Georgia, but he is known throughout the nation for his depictions of rural homes and scenes. Many of his works can be found in the White House. This particular painting is Jake's Gap. I think that the painting is a representation of what some southern plantations and farm lands have become since the Civil War. Everything is worn down and worn out. Fields have grown over. Barns and houses have been deserted. The land seems isolated and lonely, which is exactly how many regions in the South felt after the devastation of the War. Many people admire Brown's works because of their beauty and uniqueness. But I believe that his art is subtly reminding us and portraying our ravaged southland as it has been since the late 1800's.