“This painting offers a serene glimpse into the Catskill Mountains, a popular 19th-century escape, highlighting a landscape where human presence gently coexists with nature's grandeur.”
In this expansive view of the Catskill Mountains, a tranquil landscape unfolds, shaped by both nature and human endeavor. Carefully tended fields stretch toward the horizon, punctuated by a quaint church steeple and a hayrick on the right, all rendered with a precision characteristic of the period. The reverence in the handling of color and light suggests a deep appreciation for this particular American landscape, which was a prime tourist destination in the mid-19th century. Its proximity to urban centers and spectacular vistas made the Catskills a popular escape from city life. The painting captures a moment where humanity lives in harmony with a grand, yet accessible, natural world.
- Artist
- Georges Rochegrosse
- Date
- 1870
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Location
- Art Institute of Chicago
- Dimensions
- 123.8 × 184.5 cm (48 3/4 × 72 5/8 in.)
- Collection
- Arts of the Americas
- Culture
- United States
- Credit line
- Edward B. Butler Collection
What to Notice
Five details hide in plain sight. Here’s where to look.
The small church steeple rising from the trees in the middle distance.
The neatly delineated fields, showing signs of cultivation.
The hayrick on the right, a detail of rural life.
The soft, glowing light that bathes the entire scene.
1 more detail is waiting.
See all 5 in Art Whisper →Georges Rochegrosse
1859–1938 · FranceGeorges Rochegrosse was a French painter known for colossal historical scenes, often depicting brutal subjects, and his opulent Symbolist work like 'The Knight of Flowers.'
Further Works by Rochegrosse
A Marine
1874 · Art Institute of Chicago
Final Study for "Bathers at Asnières"
1883 · Art Institute of Chicago
Flower Girl in Holland
1887 · Art Institute of Chicago
The Annunciation
1887 · Art Institute of Chicago
Early Morning, Tarpon Springs
1892 · Art Institute of Chicago
The Home of the Heron
1893 · Art Institute of Chicago
After a Summer Shower
1894 · Art Institute of Chicago
Love of Winter
1914 · Art Institute of Chicago
More works to explore
Beyond Rochegrosse: works from the same years.
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Cart with Black Ox
Vincent van Gogh · 1884 · Portland Art Museum
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Two Boats in a Storm
Léon-Victor Dupré · 1870 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Paris Street; Rainy Day
Kawabata Gyokushō · 1877 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1850s–1880s
The Backgammon Players
Philip Webb · 1861 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1850s–1880s
A Sunday on La Grande Jatte — 1884
Okada Saburosuke · 1884 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Gustave Boyer (b. 1840) in a Straw Hat
Paul Cézanne · 1870 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1850s–1880s
In the Adirondacks
William Hart · 1870 · Q847508
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Moroccan Horseshoer
Mariano Fortuny Marsal · 1870 · Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Snow at Louveciennes
Camille Pissarro · 1870 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1850s–1880s
The Little Shepherdess
Jean-François Millet · 1870 · Art Institute of Chicago
Same era · 1850s–1880s
The Pink Dress (Albertie-Marguerite Carré, later Madame Ferdinand-Henri Himmes, 1854–1935)
Berthe Morisot · 1870 · Metropolitan Museum of Art
Same era · 1850s–1880s
Mountain View at Bormio (from Switzerland 1869 Sketchbook)
John Singer Sargent · 1869 · The Metropolitan Museum of Art