Thursday, October 11, 2018

The Poetry of Nature: Hudson River School Landscapes from the New-York Historical Society



Worcester Art Museum
September 8 through November 25 July 26, 2018

A stunning array of over 40 paintings from the  New - York Historical Society’s collection by renowned Hudson River School artists, including Thomas Cole, Asher B. Durand, Albert Bierstadt, Jasper  Cropsey, John F. Kensett, and William T. Richards, will be on view at the  Worcester Art Museum from September 8 through November 25, 2018. Painted  between 1818 and 1886, the works illustrate America’s scenic splendor as seen  through the eyes of some of the country’s most important painters. 

In the first decade of the 19th century, the expansive landscapes of the  Hudson River Valley and adjacent areas, such as the Catskills and the  Adirondack Mountains, inspired an elite group of American artists known as the  Hudson River School. Coming together under the influence of British émigré  painter Thomas Cole (1801 – 1848), they shared a philosophy and appreciation  for the natural landscape. Today their collective works are considered the first  uniquely American art movement. In their idyllic depic tions of the landscape,  these artists conveyed not only the majesty of America, but an image of man  living in harmonious balance with nature. 

The Poetry of Nature: Hudson River School Landscapes from the New - York Historical Society opens with seminal works by Thomas Cole and Asher B.  Durand (1796 – 1886). Cole first traveled up the Hudson in 1825, where he  captured the wildness of the American landscape in his paintings. Durand, who  frequently worked alongside Cole, was instrumental in leading the group after the latter’s untimely death in 1848. 

Cole’s romantic interpretations of the  American landscape — represented in the exhibition by his painting,  

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Catskill  Creek, New York , depicting a tranquil sunset view on the Catskill Creek — demonstrate his mastery of perspective; he is able to convey vast open spaces  and create rich atmospheric effects. 

Durand favored tighter views and closely observed details of nature.  Paintings in the exhibition will present his vivid compositions, from majestic  mountain ranges to tranquil woodland interiors and studies of trees. Durand’s  influential  Letters on Landscape Painting (1855 – 1856), promoted the movement  for plein air painting, calling such excursions, “hard - work - play.” As president of  the National Academy of Design, he advocate d for the landscape paintings by his Hudson River School colleagues at that institution and facilitated the  patronage and rise of the Hudson River School. 

Coinciding with an increase in leisure travel, the Hudson River painters  also journeyed to regions no ted for their beauty outside of New York State. New  Hampshire, coastal New England, and even the mountains of Virginia were  among the areas featured in their works.   

The exhibition was organized by the New - York Historical Society, which  holds one of the mo st renowned collections of Hudson River School paintings.  Dr. Linda S. Ferber, the museum director emerita of New - York Historical and a  leading authority on Hudson River School artists, is the curator for this  extraordinary exhibition.   


Albert Bierstadt, Autumn Woods, 1886.
Albert Bierstadt, Autumn Woods, 1886.
(New-York Historical Society



 Niagara Falls (1818) by Louisa Davis Minot. Oil on linen, 76.2 × 103.2 cm; Gift of Mrs. Waldron Phoenix Belknap, Sr., to the Waldron Phoenix Belknap, Jr., Collection. Collection of the New-York Historical Society, Object 156.4. In the early 19th century, Niagara Falls was considered the epitome of the overwhelming sublime, but the tourists walking the rocks clad in fine suits or dresses indicates this landscape was already tamed and accessible [21]. Image © The New-York Historical Society. Reproduction of any kind is prohibited without express written permission in advance from The New-York Historical Society.  

Niagara Falls (1818) by Louisa Davis Minot. Oil on linen, 76.2 × 103.2 cm; Gift of Mrs. Waldron Phoenix Belknap, Sr., to the Waldron Phoenix Belknap, Jr., Collection. Collection of the New-York Historical Society