Hudson River School Gems Featured in Freeman’s June 7 American Art Auction
Lot 5 | Asher Brown Durand (American, 1796-1886) View of the Dover Plains, New York, c. 1860s | Estimate $20,000 - $30,000
Freeman’s American Art and Pennsylvania Impressionists auction on June 7th features a fine selection works by famed Hudson River School artists, led by a scenic view of Dover Plains by Asher Brown Durand, an exquisite panorama of Blue Mountain Lake by Levi Prentice, and a tumultuous seascape by William Trost Richards.
Durand’s View of Dover Plains encapsulates the Arcadian qualities of American landscape painting at the dawn of the Civil War, an effort to bolster the nation’s conception of itself as a virgin land full promise. Durand, arguably the father figure of the Hudson River School, used images of boundless wilderness and rustic scenery as the pristine backdrop against which to draw the national narrative in pictorial terms, emphasizing the grandeur, both geographical and spiritual, of the New World. Here, Durand fashioned the scene around a lofty off-centered oak towering over a pasture with grazing cows. From the tree, the eye wanders down the sloped pasture to the river flowing towards the layered horizon, the valley and mountains stretching in the distance beneath a sliver of the golden sunset and an airy sea of clouds above.
Lot 3 | Levi Prentice (American, 1851-1935) Blue Mountain Lake | Estimate $5,000 - $8,000
In Prentice’s Blue Mountain Lake, the foreground is framed by tall trees and a rocky ledge. From there, the eye follows the water towards the distant mountains. The artist’s brushwork resembles a patchwork of red and green hues to convey the autumnal beauty of the region. The land appears vast and rich, as far as the eye can see and beyond, subtly instilling the notion that humankind cannot fully grasp or subdue an ultimately untamable nature.
Lot 12 | William Trost Richards (American, 1833-1905) Sea at Cornwall | Estimate $25,000 - $40,000
A second-generation Hudson River School artist, Richards also paid attention and tribute to the sublime qualities of nature. Sea at Cornwall depicts a steep and rugged coast, seemingly unapproachable as the waves resonantly crash onto it. The tempestuous sea and the jagged land are both awe-inspiring, fraught with danger, yielding a feeling of terror we subconsciously experience from the safety of our inland vantage point.
The market for 19th century American landscapes, having recently shown encouraging signs of strength, is again drawing significant attention from collectors who are seeking high-quality examples. Freeman’s is thus honored to present these impressive paintings along other exceptional works by the likes of Henry Pember Smith, James Hope, Edward Lamson Henry and David Johnson. Additionally, two landscapes by Hermann Herzog, offered at auction to benefit the Acquisitions Funds of the Brandywine Museum of Art, nicely round up the sale’s Hudson River School session.