Humboldt spent several years in South America, where he studied the continent’s natural history. He basically devoured the scholar’s published writings, and his teachings strongly influenced Church’s paintings. Church was a big fan of important Prussian naturalist Alexander von Humboldt (1769–1859). His South American voyages were particularly significant to him. Frederic Edwin Church’s travels included two trips to South America, in 18. It’s time to get out of the cold and head down south. I love how the colorful lights seem to take on animal or human forms, as though some cosmic battle is taking place across the sky.įrederic Edwin Church, Cotopaxi, 1862, Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI, USA. Wikimedia Commons (public domain).įrederic Edwin Church’s travels to the Arctic also inspired Aurora Borealis, which depicts the natural phenomenon better known as the Northern Lights. This detail likely refers to the doomed Franklin Expedition of the 1840s, as well as the many other explorers who died in search of the Northwest Passage.įrederic Edwin Church, Aurora Borealis, 1865, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC, USA. A broken ship’s mast, added by Church at a later date, appears in the foreground. The white icebergs feel massive and eternal against the dim sky, while greenish light adds a slightly eerie touch. This scene is a perfect example of the sublime, a feeling of awe at the power of nature that was prized by the Romantic movement. Church visited the Arctic for several weeks in 1859 and later painted The Icebergs based on sketches he made there. Understandably, this exciting and highly-dangerous endeavor captured the popular imagination. Frederic Church lived in the time of great polar exploration when adventurers from across the world raced each other to reach the North and South Poles.
Now, we move north to the frigid-but-beautiful Arctic. The result is compelling and exciting.įrederic Edwin Church, The Icebergs, 1861, Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, TX, USA. It’s also a bit frightening because it seems as though the viewer stands close to the edge of the falls. With its curtains of blue-green water and white spray, the painting is dynamic and awe-inspiring. It depicts the falls in a massive panorama. The National Gallery of Art’s Niagara Falls is the most famous of Church’s Niagara paintings. It has been a popular tourist attraction since the 19th century. Our first destination is Niagara Falls, on the border between New York, the United States and Ontario, Canada. Let’s journey around the world as we follow Frederic Edwin Church’s travels.įrederic Edwin Church, Niagara Falls, 1857, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA. He painted gorgeous landscape scenes based on each location.
In his lifetime, Church visited the Arctic, Mexico, South America, the Caribbean, Europe, and the Middle East. Hudson River School painter Frederic Edwin Church (1826-1900) was a true world traveler.
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