A North American painter, Durand stayed in the US during his
painting career. He was inspired by his native landscape, which was the
beautiful New England area. He also believed that God was manifested through
nature. His paintings reflect this view for they incline one to a sense of the
delicate beauty of nature combined with a majesty and power that can only be
achieved by a Great Creator.
Durand’s paintings were not only inspired by nature, but
were direct portrayals of the reality of it. He himself made this comment, “Let
[the artist] scrupulously accept whatever [nature] presents him until he shall,
in a degree, have become intimate with her infinity...never let him profane her
sacredness by a willful departure from truth." In his Kindred Spirits, he is depicting the enchanting beauty of North
America, while revealing the nature of the perfect friendship in which friend
shares with friend that joy he experiences whereby increasing the total
happiness. True friends are kindred spirits, as Anne Shirley would say (Anne of
Green Gables). Durand, inspired by the naturalness of friendship among men, is
portraying the reality that was obvious to Aristotle, that men need the perfect
friendship in order to live the “good life”. Here he is revealing the “good
life” being shared in the midst of beauty.
