On the Hudson

John George Brown (1867)

Is this river a place of tranquility or turbulence?

This painting depicts the Hudson River north of New York City looking toward the New Jersey side, where the water is flanked by high rocky cliffs known as the Palisades. The busy waterway is shown full of pleasure craft bringing visitors to the many tourist hotels, hiking trails, and picnic areas along the river. The Palisades appear to glow with autumn light, their tall cliffs casting shadows on the water and steamboats below.

\ Artist

John George Brown

John George Brown decided to leave his native England after hearing a music hall performer sing about life in America. In the decades following the Civil War, he became one of the most popular and commercially successful artists in the United States. Brown was best known for his paintings of the young newsboys and shoeshine boys he met on the streets of New York City, which earned him the nickname "the Boot Black Raphael.

\ About

Medium

Oil on canvas

Credit

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd