GENERAL DESCRIPTION
The jagged, snow-capped peak of the Swiss mountain the Matterhorn grandly looming over a valley of finely detailed pine trees is characteristic of the widely popular landscapes by Albert Bierstadt. The artist executed this scene while spending two years enjoying celebrity in Europe. During the late 19th century, Bierstadt became famous for his images of the American West, to which he journeyed as part of survey expeditions in 1859 and 1863. Based on firsthand experience but completed with a certain amount of tweaking in the studio, Bierstadt’s dramatic landscapes thrilled Eastern U.S.and European audiences hungry for depictions of unfamiliar places.
Excerpt from
William Keyse Rudolph, DMA label text, 2005.
NOTES
c. 1867
Object File Reviewed
The most popular and highest priced American painter of the third quarter of the 19th century was Albert Bierstadt, who produced both grand scale panoramic vistas of the West and contemplative, quiet landscape views. The artist is better known for the former type of work, which was criticized at times as being concerned with quantity rather than quality, because of the large canvases. His work grew out of the Hudson River School tradition, but had a grander romantic scale. Bierstadt made several trips to Europe and on one of these he produced the fine Matterhorn in the DMA. The Matterhorn is not as expansive or theatrical as many of Bierstadt's works, perhaps because of the subject matter. It contains some of the quiet poignancy seen in his later work when the artist turns more to realism than melodrama. Certain aspects of Bierstadt's style can be seen in this painting: his concern with scientific accuracy and clarity of detail (such as in the flowers and trees); his fascination with vast expanse; and his interest in the transitory effects of nature, with clouds and the changing play of light and shadow. In this painting the pastoral picturesqueness of the chalets and quiet mountainside is juxtaposed with the sharp jagged peak, in much the way Bierstadt often created a play between man and nature. With the increasing advance of the industrial revolution, Bierstadt continued to produce largely optimistic views of nature as awesome perfection. By the time the artist died in 1902, the world of American painting had changed its stance, and the once most popular American painter had been largely forgotten.
Excerpt from
Anne Bromberg, "Description of Selected Paintings in the Collection," DMA Education files, 1987.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Bierstadt, Albert (1830-1902)
Cultures
Geography
Depicted location: Matterhorn (mountain/Nevada/United States): TGN: 1105566
Depicted location: Alps (mountain system): TGN: 7007746
Depicted location: Italy (nation): TGN: 1000080
Depicted location: Switzerland (nation): TGN: 7011731
Process/materials
Oil on paper mounted on canvas
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
c. 1867-c.1915: Albert Bierstadt
c.1915-1918: Carl P. Steindahl (purchased painting from estate sale of artist)
1918-1920: William H. Hoops & Company, Chicago
1920-1971: Mr. and Mrs. Yancey Bartholow, Dallas (1920)
From 1971: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, Lydia Hartman Bartholow Estate
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Albert Bierstadt, Biography~Read a biography of the artist from the National Gallery of Art.
- AlbertBierstadt.org~Learn more about the artist at his eponymous website.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1971.72
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General Description
The jagged, snow-capped peak of the Swiss mountain the Matterhorn grandly looming over a valley of finely detailed pine trees is characteristic of the widely popular landscapes by Albert Bierstadt. The artist executed this scene while spending two years enjoying celebrity in Europe. During the late 19th century, Bierstadt became famous for his images of the American West, to which he journeyed as part of survey expeditions in 1859 and 1863. Based on firsthand experience but completed with a certain amount of tweaking in the studio, Bierstadt’s dramatic landscapes thrilled Eastern U.S.and European audiences hungry for depictions of unfamiliar places.
Excerpt from
William Keyse Rudolph, DMA label text, 2005.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Albert Bierstadt, Biography~Read a biography of the artist from the National Gallery of Art.
- AlbertBierstadt.org~Learn more about the artist at his eponymous website.
Notes
c. 1867
Object File Reviewed
The most popular and highest priced American painter of the third quarter of the 19th century was Albert Bierstadt, who produced both grand scale panoramic vistas of the West and contemplative, quiet landscape views. The artist is better known for the former type of work, which was criticized at times as being concerned with quantity rather than quality, because of the large canvases. His work grew out of the Hudson River School tradition, but had a grander romantic scale. Bierstadt made several trips to Europe and on one of these he produced the fine Matterhorn in the DMA. The Matterhorn is not as expansive or theatrical as many of Bierstadt's works, perhaps because of the subject matter. It contains some of the quiet poignancy seen in his later work when the artist turns more to realism than melodrama. Certain aspects of Bierstadt's style can be seen in this painting: his concern with scientific accuracy and clarity of detail (such as in the flowers and trees); his fascination with vast expanse; and his interest in the transitory effects of nature, with clouds and the changing play of light and shadow. In this painting the pastoral picturesqueness of the chalets and quiet mountainside is juxtaposed with the sharp jagged peak, in much the way Bierstadt often created a play between man and nature. With the increasing advance of the industrial revolution, Bierstadt continued to produce largely optimistic views of nature as awesome perfection. By the time the artist died in 1902, the world of American painting had changed its stance, and the once most popular American painter had been largely forgotten.
Excerpt from
Anne Bromberg, "Description of Selected Paintings in the Collection," DMA Education files, 1987.
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Bierstadt, Albert (1830-1902)
Cultures
Geography
Depicted location: Matterhorn (mountain/Nevada/United States): TGN: 1105566
Depicted location: Alps (mountain system): TGN: 7007746
Depicted location: Italy (nation): TGN: 1000080
Depicted location: Switzerland (nation): TGN: 7011731
Process/materials
Oil on paper mounted on canvas
Historical periods
Individuals
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
c. 1867-c.1915: Albert Bierstadt
c.1915-1918: Carl P. Steindahl (purchased painting from estate sale of artist)
1918-1920: William H. Hoops & Company, Chicago
1920-1971: Mr. and Mrs. Yancey Bartholow, Dallas (1920)
From 1971: Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, Lydia Hartman Bartholow Estate
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
1971.72
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object_notes_3_b-0115.xml.nores