10-A Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial, 1884–1897

10-A Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Regiment Memorial, 1884–1897
Look closely at the figures and what they look like, what they carry.

Discuss how artists can create rhythm in works of visual art. How did Saint-Gaudens create a sense of rhythm in this relief? He repeated the slant of leg and body lines and shapes at regular intervals across the sculpture. (Even the horse’s legs match the slant of the marching soldiers’ legs.) The repeated rifles create a steady rhythm in the top half of the sculpture. Only Shaw’s upright form and his horse’s neck interrupt the steady march across the sculpture.

How did Saint-Gaudens create a sense of depth in this sculpture? How do you know that some soldiers are closer to viewers than others? Soldiers who are closer to us stand out farther from the background; they are in greater relief. The soldiers at the back are in low relief. The closer forms also overlap the more distant ones.

Which figure is closest to the viewer (in highest relief)? Robert Shaw is.

Who is in command? The man on the horse, Colonel Shaw, is. How do you know? As the only mounted figure, he is above the other soldiers; he carries a sword, and his jacket has the fancy cuffs of an officer’s uniform. Also, the title tells us that this honors Robert Shaw.

This was commissioned to honor and remember Robert Shaw, but who else does it commemorate? It honors the foot soldiers of the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry.
Why was this monument was made of bronze rather than marble or wood. Bronze lasts longer outside; it reflects light and is dark and solemn. It can be worked in minute detail, and thin forms like rifles and reins do not break easily.

What does the winged figure in the sky hold? She holds poppies and an olive branch.

What do you think this figure in the sky represents? Why? She may represent an angel. The poppies usually symbolize death and remembrance, and the olive branch, peace and victory. (Artificial poppies are worn on Veterans Day to remember America’s war veterans.)

9-A Winslow Homer, The Veteran in a New Field, 1865

9-A Winslow Homer, The Veteran in a New Field, 1865

Title: describe.

Describe how Homer divided the scene in this painting. He divided it into three strips of color with a band of sky, a wider band of standing wheat, and another band of cut wheat in the foreground.

Of what war was this man a veteran? He was a veteran of the Civil War. How does Homer show us this? His military uniform jacket and canteen lie in the lower right corner.

What might laying aside his uniform represent? He has set aside soldiering and returned to regular life.

Why is this a new field for him? It may be literally a new field of grain, but it is also a new field of work for him after fighting for years.

If this man had been in a grain field the previous year, what would he probably have been doing? Probably fighting a battle, since a number of Civil War battles were fought in grain fields.

What subjects had Winslow Homer been sketching for the past few years? He had been sketching Civil War soldiers.

What does a figure carrying a scythe usually symbolize? He symbolizes the grim reaper or death.

Whose deaths might Homer be alluding to? He is alluding to dead soldiers and/or President Lincoln, who had been assassinated earlier that year. Previously, the veteran cut down soldiers in a field; now he cuts wheat.

What might a bountiful field of wheat represent? Hope, bounty, and the renewal of life.

Because a seemingly dead seed buried in the ground rises as a new plant, grain can be a symbol of rebirth or new beginnings. What might this suggest about the country after the Civil War? It could suggest that the country will recover and flourish.

Other works...

Croquet Scene, 1866 Oil on canvas; 15 7/8 x 26 1/8 in. (40.3 x 66.2 cm)
Croquet, a fad in the United States by the mid-1860s, was appreciated as a healthful outdoor activity that invited men and women to compete on equal terms as well as to visit and flirt with one another. Here, a man observes the expected courtesies by assisting his female companions in the game. He is sandwiched between two of them, who wear stylish dresses brightly colored in a patriotic palette and tower over him. Homer's apparently pleasant afternoon of play also implies the uncertain terrain of relationships between American men and women. At this time, women were evaluating the choice between their traditional roles as wives and mothers and their new opportunities for education and employment that emerged following the loss of so many men in the Civil War, growing urbanization and industrialization, and the burgeoning women's movement.

Snap the Whip, 1872 Oil on canvas; 12 x 20 in. (30.5 x 50.8 cm)
Children embodied innocence and the promise of America's future and were depicted by many artists and writers during the 1870s. Here, Homer reminisces about rural simplicity and reflects on the challenges of the complex post–Civil War world. Released from the confines of a one-room schoolhouse, exuberant boys engage in a spirited game. As the population shifted to cities and the little red schoolhouse faded from memory, this image would have evoked nostalgia for the nation's agrarian past. The boys' bare feet signal childhood's freedom, but their suspenders are associated with manhood's responsibilities. Their game, which requires teamwork, strength, and calculation, may allude to the reunited nation. Observed from right to left, Homer's boys hang on to one another, strain to stay connected, run in perfect harmony, and fall away, enacting all the possible scenarios for men after the Civil War.

Pitching Quoits, 1865 Oil on canvas; 26 3/4 x 53 3/4 in. (68 x 136.5 cm)
While photographers documented the Civil War's carnage and some artists depicted its battles, Homer primarily chronicled camp life. Having worked in oil for barely two years, he painted Pitching Quoits, his most ambitious war scene, soon after returning from a difficult visit to Virginia. Surrounding an expanse of hard-packed campground are groups of soldiers who were known as courageous special fighters with New York City ties. These men had ordered picturesque red uniforms designed after those worn by the Zouaves, Berber tribesmen who had fought with the French in the Crimean War ten years earlier. With downward or disengaged stares, Homer's Zouaves seem psychologically isolated from one another and detached from any apparent narrative, which makes the painting's true subject the boredom of time spent between battles. Avoiding overt references to combat or lost lives, Homer may also have provided to those at home a comforting connection to their loved ones' daily experiences.

Here is a link to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's website, which has an incredible exhibit online right now called "American Stories: Paintings of Everyday Life, 1765 - 1915". You'll find a lot of paintings by Winslow Homer, John Singleton Copely (2a), George Caleb Bingham (7b), as well as Thomas Eakins, John Singer Sargent, James McNeill Whistler, and Mary Cassatt, who we'll study soon.

10-B Various Artists, Quilts of the 19th and 20th Centuries

10-B Various Artists, Quilts of the 19th and 20th Centuries

Why are quilt patterns like Greenlee’s called crazy quilts? It’s an informal pattern with shapes that go in random directions.

Find pieces of a printed fabric repeated several times in Greenlee’s quilt. A brown and pink floral is repeated in the second row, third square, and in the third row, second and third squares. A red, white,and black plaid is in the third row, second and third squares.

Compare the patterns of Greenlee’s Crazy Quilt with that of McCord’s Grandmother’s Fan Quilt. What is the main difference between these two quilts? Greenlee’s is made primarily of parallel lines like ladders and McCord’s has wedge shapes forming circles.

How did both quilters create unity in their quilt designs? They repeated colors, shapes, and patterns, and arranged their design into an ordered grid.

Which quilts on this poster took the most advance planning and why. It was probably the Amish quilts because of their geometric regularity.

Which ones took the longest time to sew? The ones made from many small pieces of fabric and with the finest stitches took the longest to construct.

Why did women make quilts? The main reason was to keep their families warm, but quilts also added decoration and color to homes. Many women also enjoyed designing and sewing quilts.

Why did quilters often sew small bits of fabric together rather than using one large piece of material? By using fabric scraps and pieces of discarded clothing, they could create inexpensive bed covers.

How do quilts record a family’s history? Quilt pieces made from old clothes could remind the family of the people who wore them and special occasions when they wore them.

How is Greenlee’s quilt is similar to kente cloth designs? (left) They both have contrasting parallel bands of color that resemble ladders.

What nineteenth-century developments made it easier for American women to make quilts? The invention of the cotton gin and power loom and opening of New England textile factories made commercially woven and printed fabric available and affordable. Catalogs and magazines printed quilt patterns. The introduction of sewing machines made sewing quicker.

None of these pieces were intended to be revered as works of art by their creators. Why are they considered to be art now? Many would state that these quilts are not art, but rather, craft (because of their functionality, because they are not a "traditional" art form like painting and sculpting). What about the modern-day quilts we looked at that are meant to be seen as art pieces and not used bed coverings? Many of these newer quilts were made primarily with the use of machines, with very little work done by hand. Or, they challenge our ideas of what a quilt should look like. Does this change how we respond to them?

Questions like these lead us, ultimately, to the never-ending and lively discussion of... What is Art? :)

Below:
A Hot Day in Lancaster
Water Ballet #5
Techno Jam
Quilt by Linda Gray

9-B Alexander Gardner, "Abraham Lincoln", 1865

9-B Alexander Gardner, Abraham Lincoln, 1865

One characteristic of photography is that it creates a sense of intimacy. What is another? (which makes it unlike painting, drawing, or sculpting) - Objects/People are viewed with very little alteration
Where is the light source? Where does it create shadows?
Describe his features, expression, surrounding objects, etc.

Alexander Gardner worked for Mathew Brady (photographer whose pictures of Lincoln were featured on the two $5 bills) for a time during the Civil War.

Mathew Brady (1822 – 1896) – father of photojournalism
Risked his life on the frontlines of the war to capture combat photographs. Photographed many prominent people; after the war, his audience became tired of seeing images of war and he spent the last several years of his life destitute and forgotten.
How did photography change the way people viewed the civil war? (Could see casualties and the effects of war with their own two eyes; not through the eyes of a painter or writer.)

Political art: what is the purpose?
Why was photography important in a political campaign? (it was a new medium, allowed viewers to "be there" and see the candidate interacting with others, giving speeches, or doing normal, everyday-life kinds of things)
What media/publicity tools do politicians use today? (travel, speeches, radio, the press, video, tv, photography, the internet) What was available at Lincoln’s time?

Which images from political campaigns do you find compelling and why? What do the posters proclaim about their candidates? Pay attention to symbolic imagery (Justice, Peace, colors, etc.), facial expressions (smiles, earnest frowns) and words (catch-phrases, quippy slogans):

L-R from top: 1848 Zachary Taylor, 1860 Abraham Lincoln, 1908 William Taft, 1960 John F Kennedy, 1980 Ronald Reagan, 2008 Barack Obama

8a - Looking Down Yosemite Valley, California, 1865 ALBERT BIERSTADT [1830 –1902]

8a - Looking Down Yosemite Valley, California, 1865 ALBERT BIERSTADT [1830 –1902]

Bierstadt was a member of the Hudson river school (Established by Thomas Cole!), painted over 500 pieces. Bierstadt's work is characterized by his use of the Romantic style - shining white clouds, glittering waterfalls, dramatic landscapes, etc.

How big would a person be if depicted in this scene?

How has Bierstadt created an illusion of great distance or depth? He made objects in the foreground darker, more detailed, and larger than distant ones. This approach is called aerial or atmospheric perspective

Composition? Rule of thirds

What is your eye drawn to first?

How does the light add drama? (creates dark shadows that dramatically contrast with the light parts)

On a map, locate Yosemite National Park.
Compare photographs of Yosemite Valley with Bierstadt’s painting to understand how he exaggerated the size of the rock formations.

Bierstadt painted some of the rock formations in this painting taller than they really were. Is this exaggeration dishonest?

How else did Bierstadt make the West seem even grander than it was? He bathed this scene in a golden, glowing light.

How might this view look different today?

Below: "Cathedral Rock", "Cathedral Rocks", "Among the Sierra Nevada", "Lake Tahoe"

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7b – The County Election, 1852, George Caleb Bingham

7b – The County Election, 1852, George Caleb Bingham

Painter from the west (MO), depicted and immortalized the common man, frontier life

Observations: what is going on on Election Day?

How did he unify the scene so that the many figures form a connected group? (All of the characters are touching and overlap each other)

How did he create the illusion of depth? (Objects in the background are smaller, colors become more muted)

What elements suggest the wide variety of backgrounds and occupations of the people in the scene? (Their styles of clothing, specifically, hats)

What message does this painting convey? (A whole community of men, from rich to poor, come together to vote. No single figure is emphasized or made larger than others in this crowd; all are equal)

What is the voting scene like today? (Secrecy, privacy, not allowed to heckle or campaign up to a certain distance from the voting site; non-land-owners, women and African Americans may now vote)

Describe George Caleb Bingham's style: bright, saturated colors, bright lighting/a lot of contrast between lights and darks, smooth brush strokes.

Below, "Daniel Boone Escorting Settlers through the Cumberland Gap" and "The Jolly Flatboatmen"

7a – State Capitol, Columbus Ohio, 1838-1861, Thomas Cole + others

7a – State Capitol, Columbus Ohio, 1838-1861, Thomas Cole + others

Thomas Cole – the oxbow. Even though he didn’t have much experience in it, he dabbled in architecture. How would this have been possible? (fewer building codes and restrictions at that time)

Ohio became a state in 1803, the 17th state.

Why was Greek revival a popular style?

Compare to buildings around it – they are taller, more windows, flat roofs. Why is this 19th century building shorter than the modern ones?

How does the Greek revival style reflect its predecessors?

What are the features that are found in Greek and Roman architecture? Columns, a pediment (triangle above entrance), symmetrical, light stone (though Greek ones had been painted); capitals (sit on top of columns), pilasters (square columns attached to walls), drum (donut shaped structure that supports conical roof), entablature (two-part horizontal band that is supported by the column capitals and pilasters)

How did the architects create harmony in this building? (it is symmetrical, use of light stone throughout, repeated elements such as columns/pilasters, etc)

William Henry Powell painted "Battle of Lake Erie", which is found in the rotunda of the Ohio state house. We looked at earlier because it is very similar in style to "Washington Crossing the Delaware".











Other state capitols: fairly similar exteriors (Greek revival, Neo-classical), individualized interiors that reflect the state's own unique history and reflect regional culture. Also, when possible, states use local materials to contstruct these buildings, thereby promoting local resources and business. Below, the Texas state capitol building; inside, a design set in the floor that represents the "six flags over Texas" - a record of the six nations that controlled Texas at some point in its history (clockwise from top right: France, Spain, the U.S., the Confederacy, and Mexico. At the center is the seal of the Independent Republic of Texas).















Hawaii: Bauhaus, Hawaiian international architecture
ND, OR, LA: art deco (Chrysler building)
NM: blend of New Mexico territorial style and neoclassical influences- only round state capitol building in US (1886 version: Victorian, audacious and disliked because it didn't reflect the culture there)
NY: Romanesque revival and neo-renaissance

Many capitol buildings reflect greek/roman architecture, what do some of the other buildings represent through their use of different styles. (European aesthetics such as gothic architecture, regional values, art deco- futuristic, industrial, elegant)

Why study state capitol buildings? Architecture (art) reflects ideas and ideals (political, philosophical). Many of these buildings reflect specific values and recall America’s past, its present goals, and hope for its future.



Remember! Quiz on 11/18 - be sure to start reviewing sections 3b-7a and 8b.

8b: “Sans Arc Lakota” Ledger Book, 1880–1881; Black Hawk

Read 8b: “Sans Arc Lakota” Ledger Book, 1880–1881

What materials did he use; how can you tell? What did American Indians use to create art before these materials were available? (paint on teepee walls)

At first we were surprised that Caton had given Black Hawk such "unrefined" art materials as a notebook with lined pages, a pen and colored pencils. But given the Lakotas' lifestyle, why were these materials sufficient? (The Lakota were nomadic; a notebook and a few small drawing implements were far easier to transport than, say, dozens of canvases and hundreds of tubes of paint)

Compare to Catlin and Wyeth: 1) Which is the most historically accurate? Why? 2) How are the paintings similar and different?

Why did William Edward Caton want these drawings? (Caton had originally planned to get Black Hawk to illustrate his dream, but with the vast majority of the images being about everyday life, they were still valuable as a record of a lifestyle and culture that was on the verge of extinction.)

http://www.plainsledgerart.org/view.pila?action=list&LEDGER_ID=10 – includes animals, battles, spirits. Ledger books became popular in tribes – how were they different from teepee painting? (More private, could choose who to show them to, better for describing mundane, humorous, etc., events as well.) The image at the left is one of the first two drawings in this book; it depicts a thunder spirit. What can we recognize in this image that reflects the nature of this being?

Many 20th century Native American artists depict tribal life and rituals in a manner far different from the ways white artists depict their ideas of Native American culture. Artists such as Wyeth used rough brushstrokes, unmixed colors and little detail to illustrate The Last of the Mohicans, and this may be seen as a commentary on the wild, "unrefined" lifestyle of the Indians. However, artists such as Maria Montoya Martinez and Woodrow Crumbo (examples of work below) depict Native American life in an entirely different way. Martinez and Crumbo both work graceful, fluid lines, invisible brush strokes, and Crumbo with an incredible attention to stylization and detail.

Woodrow (Woody) Crumbo, 1912-1989 - Potowatomi Indian from Oklahoma, became a well-known artist of Native American subjects. Of his career, he wrote: "Half of my life passed in striving to complete the pictorial record of Indian history, religion, rituals, customs, way of life, and philosophies . . . a graphic record that a million words could not begin to tell." He also led a troupe that performed and collected traditional Indian dances while pursuing a degree in art.

6b: Catlin Painting the Portrait of Mah-to-toh-pa—Mandan, 1861/1869

Read 6b: Catlin Painting the Portrait of Mah-to-toh-pa—Mandan, 1861/1869

Who/what is actually the main subject of the painting? (Catlin painted this scene about 30 years after this event occurred, placing himself opposite the Mandan chief, with many of the Indians watching, open-mouthed, as he (Catlin) painted a striking likeness of their chief. Catlin's portrait-in-the-works is as much the center of attention as the Chief himself.)

Why do you think everyone is so interested in seeing Catlin paint a portrait? (Unfamiliar with how white men made images, creating realistic likenesses may have seemed like capturing someone’s spirit on canvas/paper)

Why do historians value Catlin’s paintings? (Catlin shows the details of American Indians’ dress and life before they adopted European clothes and customs; American Indians' way of life was about to change drastically due to the resettlement acts that would uproot them from their traditional homes and force them to change many of their customs)

Catlin first painted Mah-toh-to-pa indoors, but he changed the setting when he painted this version. Why did he do this? (Outdoor setting would be grander, would better reflect the Mandans’ home, would allow him to include more people)

Catlin didn’t include all the weapons the chief had been carrying. He said he left them out because he wanted to emphasize the grace and simplicity of his figure. Is it right for an artist to change details such as this? How would our impression of Mah-to-toh-pa change if he were wearing all his weapons? (Catlin was sympathetic to the Indian cause, perhaps he wanted to portray them in a less warlike manner to make them appear less threatening. Mah-to-toh-pa would look like a violent character if armed to the teeth.)

Catlin painted hundreds of portraits and scenes from tribal life of multiple American Indian tribes during his travels. See the link below for the complete first volume of his works.

(Below: Mandan Chief, Medicine Man, Bear Dance)

North American Indians: Being Letters and Notes on Their Manners, Customs, and Conditions, Written During Eight Years' Travel Amongst the Wildest Tribes of Indians in North America, 1832-1839. Volume 1 - http://lincoln.lib.niu.edu/cgi-bin/philologic/getobject.pl?c.3900:1.lincoln

6a: John James Audubon

Read 6-A John James Audubon, American Flamingo, 1838

- Compare to Thomas Cole- why did Audubon and other artists want to document American wildlife at this time? (As urbanization gained momentum, there was a growing sense of nostalgia for what they were about to lose- nature - many animals/plants; massive hunting parties destroyed a lot of wildlife)
- How did they make scientific drawings? (no cameras; either drew animals in nature or, more likely, drew dead animals brought in for the specific purpose of making detailed scientific drawings)
-Why are Audubon’s images different from his contemporaries’? (Drew many from life when possible, but made them look living if they had to be killed to be drawn accurately; strove to give his paintings action and realism)
- Where is the American flamingo today? (much rarer; Caribbean area, central America).
- What are the sketches at the top? (fills out the page, shows detailed views of different parts of the bird)
- How is this print of a flamingo different from the plastic flamingos that people stick in their yards? Are they different? Are they both art?
- Thanks to Audubon, we have detailed images of birds that are now extinct, such as: the Carolina parrot, passenger pigeon, great auk, and Labrador duck.

*The entire folio collection, with his writings, may be found at: http://www.audubon.org/bird/boa/BOA_index.html

Audubon society – named for JJ Audubon because of his adventurous spirit and concern and passion for birds and other American wildlife, which he observed carefully and understood to be part of intricate systems in nature. The Audubon Society is a conservation effort that works to protect birds, wildlife and their habitats.
- With the invention of cameras, artists could work from photographs. What may have been some limitations of cameras? (many types of wildlife were extinct or much rarer at this point; for many years, cameras were cumbersome and subjects had to pose perfectly still for several minutes)
- Even after the invention of cameras, wildlife painting/drawing is still popular. Why might artists still be interested in drawing animals? (for personal interest, there is a market for realistic wildlife paintings/drawings still, for causes such as the Audubon society)

Also -- artists began to shift priorities: artists in the past century or so were freer to concentrate on capturing the “spirit”, movement, impression, or personality of the animal- such things aren’t possible with cameras- not in the same way. Until the late 1800s, the dominant "acceptable" style for painting, drawing and sculpting was realism. Beginning with the Impressionists in France (Monet, Renoir, Manet, Cezanne, etc.), new ways of "seeing" and interpreting the world were being explored. The Impressionists tried to capture the essence of a very brief moment in time (the "impression"). From there, cubism, art deco, abstract expressionism, surrealism, and many other art movements were born.

One artist who is credited with developing a popular and interesting style of art is...

Charley Harper (1922-2007), Cincinnati, OH
“In school I began to paint hyper-realistically – highlights on hairs.... [Eventually] I began to feel that this method of dealing with form revealed nothing new about the subject, never challenged the viewer to expand his awareness…” So he began recording what he felt to be the “essence” of a scene/animal/etc. He called it minimal realism: “Wildlife art without the fuss and feathers. I don’t try to put everything in – I try to leave everything out. I think flat, simple, hard-edge and funny."

HOMEWORK: essay: compare/contrast a painting by Audubon with a painting of the same bird by Harper. Include these four paragraphs in the main body of the essay: Describe Audubon's painting; describe Harper's painting. Pay attention to what each artist includes in his piece- plants, other animals, nests, bugs, etc. Pay attention to what Harper includes/leaves out in his stylized images of the birds. Then talk about how they are different and how they are similar. Have fun! Due November 4. (You can do extra credit and write another, due November 11)

Audubon's Birds of America

Go here to see some of Charley Harper's birds

Jaden - Wood Ibis

Jenna - Burrowing Owl

John - Purple Gallinule

Josh - Swallow-tailed Kite

Michael - (Common) Puffin

Paige - Passenger Pigeon

Shannon - Trumpeter Swan

Stephanie - Whooping Crane

The images of Harper's art in the link above come from this book: Birds and Words

4b, 5a, 5b

4b: Benjamin Franklin; Hiram Powers, 1862

Read, observations
- Powers lived after Franklin, so how did he learn about his appearance?
- Who else have we studied that went to Europe to pursue art? (Stuart) Why did Powers go?
- Why did the US government want a statue of Franklin? (He was a member of the convention that framed the constitution, which created the senate.)
- Nineteenth-century sculptors often depicted leaders in classical Greek or Roman robes, reminding viewers that American government had its roots in ancient Greece. Can you think of any examples of this in the US? (the Statue of Liberty) Powers was criticized for showing Franklin in contemporary dress (for the time). Why did he choose to do this?
- Compare Ben Franklin to portrait of George Washington: clothes, expression, pose, props

- Compare to portrait of Paul Revere: clothes, expression, pose, props

Other art in the Senate building: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/serialset/cdocuments/sd107-11/browse.html
Homework: Essay! Pick one of the paintings/sculptures from the catalogue and read the accompanying text. Write a paragraph describing the artwork (who made it, where, when, materials, size, etc.). In another paragraph describe what it depicts (remember to pay attention to dress, expression and pose, composition, etc.). Talk about the meaning/significance of the piece.Write another paragraph or so about why it is in the Senate building. You may need to look at other resources (please cite them at the end of the paper). Put the name of the artist and the title of the piece at the top of the paper; include an introduction and conclusion. Due October 21. If you’d like extra credit, you can do another one.

5a: View from Mount Holyoke (The Oxbow), Thomas Cole, 1836
Read, observations
- Why might someone living in a city at that time want an image like this in their home?

- What sorts of images are equivalent to this these days?
Discuss the Noah/Shaddai connection (symbols created through the presence of the logging scars)-In light of the recent rain…

-A reference to the days of Noah? Commentary on present-day society?

From the last paragraph: Is Cole suggesting that the landscape be read as a holy text that reveals the word of God? If so, wouldn’t any human intrusion be sacrilege? On the other hand, the artist’s careful division of the landscape implies that civilization drives out the danger and chaos inherent in the natural world. Perhaps the painting itself embodies Cole’s ambivalence (indecisiveness). It was also painted for profit and therefore could be considered, to a certain degree, exploitative of the nation’s natural beauty.

Thomas Cole is considered the founder of the Hudson River School movement- mid-1800s, landscape painting that was characterized by themes of naturalism (realism) and romanticism (emphasizing beauty, conveying a sense of purity, emotions). What may have spurred its creation? (a response to urbanization)

(left: sketch for "The View from Mt. Holyoke")

The Course of the Empire series (1 - The Savage State, 2 - The Arcadian/Pastoral State, 3 - Consummation, 4 - Destruction, 5 - Desolation)

What elements change? Which ones stay the same? How does Cole get his ideas across? What kinds of tools does he use to set the mood in these paintings?

Like the next artist, Thomas Cole did some illustrations for the popular book, "Last of the Mohicans", by James Fenimore Cooper. Here is one:














5b: The Last of the Mohicans Cover Illustration, N. C. Wyeth, 1919
Read, observations
Describe the style of the painting and how it pertains to the subject-matter (the rough brush strokes and unmixed colors reflect the rough-hewn and less "refined" lifestyle of the Indians; rich colors and slightly stylized characters/environment would appeal to the children who read the book)
Why is or is not this an accurate depiction of an American Indian?
- Is this ethical?



















French and Indian war:
The French and Indian War, a colonial extension of the Seven Years War that ravaged Europe from 1756 to 1763, was the bloodiest American war in the 18th century. It took more lives than the American Revolution, involved people on three continents, including the Caribbean. The war was the product of an imperial struggle, a clash between the French and English over colonial territory and wealth. Within these global forces, the war can also be seen as a product of the localized rivalry between British and French colonists.
After a year and a half of undeclared war, the French and the English formally declared war in May 1756. For the first three years of the war, the outnumbered French dominated the battlefield, soundly defeating the English in battles at Fort Oswego and Ticonderoga. Perhaps the most notorious battle of the war was the French victory at Fort William Henry, which ended in a massacre of British soldiers by Indians allied with the French. The battle and ensuing massacre was captured for history—though not accurately—by James Fenimore Cooper in his classic The Last of the Mohicans .
The tide turned for the British in 1758, as they began to make peace with important Indian allies and, under the direction of Lord William Pitt began adapting their war strategies to fit the territory and landscape of the American frontier. The British had a further stroke of good fortune when the French were abandoned by many of their Indian allies. Exhausted by years of battle, outnumbered and outgunned by the British, the French collapsed during the years 1758-59, climaxing with a massive defeat at Quebec in September 1759.
The results of the war effectively ended French political and cultural influence in North America. England gained massive amounts of land and vastly strengthened its hold on the continent. The war, however, also had subtler results. It badly eroded the relationship between England and Native Americans; and, though the war seemed to strengthen England's hold on the colonies, the effects of the French and Indian War played a major role in the worsening relationship between England and its colonies that eventually led into the Revolutionary War.

4a: Washington Crossing the Delaware; Emanuel Leutze, 1851

4a: Washington Crossing the Delaware; Emanuel Leutze, 1851

Read, observations.
What is the composition?
How big is the painting?
How does Leutze create the illusion of great distance?
What is calm in this scene? What is chaotic?
Does the boat look safe? The actual boats used in this venture were larger and fit 30-40 men.
-Why did Leutze depict them this way instead?

Related artistic works
- "Washington Crossing the Delaware" is the title of a 1936 sonnet by David Schulman. It refers to the scene in the painting, and is a 14-line rhyming sonnet of which every line is an anagram of the title:
A hard, howling, tossing water scene.
Strong tide was washing hero clean.
"How cold!" Weather stings as in anger.
O Silent night shows war ace danger!

The cold waters swashing on in rage.
Redcoats warn slow his hint engage.
When star general's action wish'd "Go!"
He saw his ragged continentals row.

Ah, he stands - sailor crew went going.
And so this general watches rowing.
He hastens - winter again grows cold.
A wet crew gain Hessian stronghold.

George can't lose war with's hands in;
He's astern - so go alight, crew, and win!

- William H. Powell created a painting that closely resembles Luetze's work, depicting Oliver Perry transferring command from one ship to another during the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. The original painting now hangs in the Ohio Statehouse, and Powell later created a larger, more light toned rendering of the same subject which hangs in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. In both of Powell's works, Perry is shown standing in a small boat rowed by several men in uniform. The Washington painting shows the direction of travel from right to left, and the Perry image shows a reverse direction of motion, but the two compositions are still very similar.



- "Washington Rallying the Troops at Monmouth", Leutze's companion piece to Washington Crossing the Delaware is displayed at the University of California, Berkeley.








- In 1953 the American Pop Artist Larry Rivers painted his version of Washington Crossing the Delaware (using the same title) which is in the collection of The Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
What elements do the two paintings have in common? What is different?









- Grant Wood makes direct use of Leutze's painting in his own Daughters of Revolution, 1932. The painting is a direct jab at the D.A.R., examining what Wood interpreted as their unfounded elitism.





-New Jersey State quarter: Crossroads of the Revolution