James Hope

(1818-1892)

As a veteran of eleven battles during the Civil War, James Hope provides a stark reminder that some of the most tranquil landscape paintings in American art were painted during the early 1860s, in the midst of the worst carnage and loss of life the country had ever experienced. This absolutely marvelous scene in the Green Mountains of Vermont is dated 1866 and leaves the viewer believing life has forever been idyllic. I found every aspect of this piece extremely appealing: the shadow passages, the brilliant light and the single figure fishing in the stream giving a great sense of scale to the whole composition. This painting was a Vose Gallery discovery in 1973 and a piece I continue to believe measures up to biggername artists.