Art Institute of Chicago

Rocky Coast

John Frederick Kensett (American, 1816–1872)LinkedCulture matchlcp-319c5daaa748

Date: c. 1860
Medium: Oil on canvas
Culture: United States
Department: Arts of the Americas
Institution: Art Institute of Chicago
Object ID: 145805

From the Art Institute of Chicago record

Like the Impressionists, who emphasized light effects, painters of the Hudson River School focused on temporal conditions of the landscape to suggest specific atmospheres. In Rocky Coast , John Frederick Kensett depicted the shoreline on a hazy day, with calm water and gentle waves. The careful treatment of nature by the Hudson River School artists has been linked to the writings of Transcendentalists such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, who wrote in Nature (1836): “Standing on the bare ground,—my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space,—all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball. I am nothing. I see all.” The horizon line of Rocky Coast illustrates this idea, as the uninterrupted water appears infinite, suggesting that the ocean continues beyond the vision of the viewer.

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Provenance & credit

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Credit line: Gift of Brooks McCormick

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Object type: AAT300033618

Part of LinkedCulture topics

American Landscape and Coastal Paintings
These works are 19th-century oil paintings depicting natural landscapes and seascapes from the northeastern United States, particularly coastal New England regions and rocky shores.
140 objects from 4 institutions
American Watercolor Landscape Art
These objects are predominantly watercolor and drawing works by American artists depicting natural landscapes, outdoor recreational activities, and coastal or wilderness scenes from the 19th century.
63 objects from 3 institutions