biografía de Frederic Edwin CHURCH (1826-1900)

Lugar de nacimiento: Hartford, CT

Lugar de defunción: NYC

Direcciones: NYC; "Olana," his estate on the Hudson River, from 1870s

Profesión: Landscape painter

Estudios: Benjamin Coe and A.H. Emmons in Hartford; his principal teacher was Thomas Cole, in Catskill, NY, 1844-46

Exposiciones: NAD, frequently from 1845-on; Brooklyn AA, 1861-74; American Art-Union, 1847-52; PAFA, 1851-67; Bloomfield, Steel & Co., 1859; Paris Expo, 1867 (medal); MMA, 1900 (large memorial retrospective); NGA, Wash., DC, 1988

Asociaciones: ANA, 1848; NA, 1849; Century Assoc.

Obra: Olana State Historic Site, Hudson, NY; MMA; NMAA; NGA; BMFA; Cleveland Museum of Art; CGA; Reynolda House, Winston-Salem, NC; Reading Mus., PA; Public Museum and Gallery; Edinburgh Mus., Scotland; Shelburne (VT) Mus.; Cooper-Hewitt Mus., NYC; Corcoran Gal.

Comentarios: One of the most renowned painters of the Hudson River School of the mid 19th century, he became famous for his huge and majestic landscapes. In 1853, he trekked from the jungles of Ecuador and Colombia, up into their Andes mountains, and repeated the trip again in 1857. Here he found inspiration for his signature landscapes, characteristically filled with light, atmosphere, and the drama of mountainous terrain. In 1861, he ventured to the Arctic, capturing the almost surreal glow of the icebergs in their seascapes. In 1867, he visited Europe and the Mediterranean rim in search of romantic subjects. He also painted in the West Indies. Around 1877, shortly after the completion of his Persian style villa, "Olana," on the Hudson River, he was afflicted by rheumatism. Thereafter, he managed to travel to Mexico, but spent the last decades of his life largely between Olana and his summer camp at Mt. Katahdin, ME. Signature note: He usually signed in block letters as "F.E. CHURCH," or "F.E.C." and his paintings are usually dated. He did not adhere to any particular color for signing.

Fuentes: G&W; DAB; Cowdrey, NAD; Cowdrey, AA & AAU; Karolik Cat., 160-65, three repros,; Bolton, Miniature Painters; Rutledge, PA; Washington Art Assoc. Cat., 1857; French; Clement and Hutton; Tuckerman; CAB. More recently, see Baigell, Dictionary; Encyclopaedia of New Orleans Artists, 76-77; Campbell, New Hampshire Scenery, 33; Muller, Paintings and Drawings at the Shelburne Museum, 42 (w/repro.); 300 Years of American Art, vol. 1, 216; David Huntington, The Landscapes of Frederic Edwin Church: Vision of an American Era (1966); Metropolitan Museum of Art, American Paradise: The World of the Hudson River School, (Abrams, 1987; Franklin Kelly, Frederic Edwin Church and the National Landscape, 1988; Gerald Carr, Catalogue Raisonne of Works of Art at Olana, 1994.