Indian Summer

J. Francis Murphy, Indian Summer, 1903, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of William T. Evans, 1909.7.51
Copied J. Francis Murphy, Indian Summer, 1903, oil on canvas, 16 1422 in. (41.256.0 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of William T. Evans, 1909.7.51
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Artwork Details

Title
Indian Summer
Date
1903
Dimensions
16 1422 in. (41.256.0 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of William T. Evans
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Keywords
  • Landscape — plain
  • Landscape — season — autumn
  • Architecture Exterior — domestic — house
Object Number
1909.7.51

Artwork Description

J. Francis Murphy created intimate landscape scenes that were painstakingly produced. His process required applying one overall wash of paint to the canvas while he was outside so that he could capture the dominant colors of the landscape. He would let the canvas dry for up to a year before completing the painting in his studio. With its spindly trees, soft yellow-green fields and sweeping clouds, Indian Summer conjures the hazy quality of a memory or dream. (Burke, “J. Francis Murphy,” American Paintings in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, vol. III, 1980)