Biblical Landscape with Adam and Eve

Victor Joseph Gatto, Biblical Landscape with Adam and Eve, 20th century, oil on canvas board, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr., 1998.84.17
Copied Victor Joseph Gatto, Biblical Landscape with Adam and Eve, 20th century, oil on canvas board, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr., 1998.84.17

Artwork Details

Title
Biblical Landscape with Adam and Eve
Date
20th century
Credit Line
Gift of Herbert Waide Hemphill, Jr.
Mediums Description
oil on canvas board
Classifications
Keywords
  • Animal
  • Landscape — water
  • Religion — Old Testament — Eve
  • Religion — Old Testament — Adam
  • Religion — Old Testament — Garden of Eden
Object Number
1998.84.17

Artwork Description

Victor Joseph Gatto, an Italian Catholic, rarely attended church, but he painted several fantasy images based on biblical characters. A former featherweight boxer, Gatto had no formal art training and created form and depth in his pieces by piling on the paint, layer by layer, with quick brushstrokes. Viewers and art collectors claim that Gatto could “evoke places and realms never seen by him and yet capture them with a brush.” (Bess Barzansky, “Victor Joseph Gatto,” Epstein/Powell Gallery, 2012)