A General View of the Falls of Niagara

Alvan Fisher, A General View of the Falls of Niagara, 1820, oil on canvas, 34 ³⁄₈ x 48 ¹⁄₈ in. (87.2 x 122.3 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1967.85

Free to use

Artwork Details

Title: A General View of the Falls of Niagara
Artist: Alvan Fisher
Date: 1820
Location: Smithsonian American Art Museum
/
2nd Floor
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South Wing
Dimensions: 34 ³⁄₈ x 48 ¹⁄₈ in. (87.2 x 122.3 cm.)
Credit Line: Museum purchase
Mediums: oil
Mediums Description: oil on canvas
Classifications: Painting
Subjects: Landscape — Canada — Niagara Falls
Landscape — waterfall — Niagara Falls
Landscape — weather — cloud
Indian
Figure group
Object Number: 1967.85
Linked Open Data: https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1967.85

Artwork Description

This scene by Alvan Fisher conveys the magnificent beauty of Niagara Falls, which quickly became an icon for the new nation.Tiny figures stand at the rim of the cataract, their gestures expressing awe and delight in the grandeur of the scene before them.Lacking a lengthy, cultured past, Americans looked to the grandeur of the landscape to reflect the scale of the new country’s ambitions.Just as the Seven Wonders of the World had given Europeans a sense of pride in their past, Niagara Falls and other natural wonders became symbols of America’s identity.