Frederic Edwin Church

Fredrich Church was a dominant figure in the second generation of the Hudson River School. Born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1826 he was the son of a wealthy business man. His major artistic training was as the pupil of Thomas Cole, founder of the Hudson River School. His first canvases were strongly influenced by Cole but he soon took a more natural approach to painting instead of portraying Cole's allegorical landscapes. After two years of training Church moved to New York were he became a success as he was one of the youngest artists to be elected to the status of academian at the National Academy of Design in 1848. In 1853 he travelled to South America following the route from Columbia to Equador and producing drawings that would be the basis for many important exotic canvases. Subsequent trips to ancient lands followed and he stopped in London to view the work of Turner. By 1880, Church was crippled from rhuematism and in 1890 he settled in his villa, Olana, on the Hudson which is now a museum. He died in New York City in 1900.

Frederic Edwin Church Images:
Magdalena River
Niagara Falls
Rainy Season in the Tropics, 1866
Scene on Catskill Creek
Sierra Nevada De Santa Maria
Sunset