Prairie Meadows Burning

George Catlin, Prairie Meadows Burning, 1832, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.374
George Catlin, Prairie Meadows Burning, 1832, oil on canvas, 11 x 14 1⁄8 in. (27.8 x 35.9 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr., 1985.66.374
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Artwork Details

Title
Prairie Meadows Burning
Artist
Date
1832
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
11 x 14 1⁄8 in. (27.8 x 35.9 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Mrs. Joseph Harrison, Jr.
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Disaster — fire
  • Landscape — plain
  • Figure group — male
  • Animal — horse
  • Indian
Object Number
1985.66.374
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.66.374

Artwork Description

George Catlin painted ominous, swirling clouds of black smoke that loom out of the distance and drive the Indians before them. The artist was an eyewitness to such terrifying events, and described the fire’s “thunder rumbling as it goes.” But he also wrote that prairie fires made for “some of the most beautiful scenes that are to be witnessed in this country, and also some of the most sublime.” (Catlin, Letters and Notes, vol. 2, no. 33, 1841; reprint 1973)

Works by this artist (6 items)

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Mineo Mizuno, Teardrop Plate, 1980, earthenware, stains, and glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Stephen Neal Dennis in memory of Walter Reece Dennis, 1997.106.2, ©1980 Mineo Mizuno
Teardrop Plate
Artist
Date1980
earthenware, stains, and glaze
Not on view
Mineo Mizuno, Cup and Saucer, 1980, earthenware, stains, and glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Donna and John Donaldson in memory of Jean and John Michael on the occasion of the Fifteenth Anniversary of the James Renwick Alliance and the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the Renwick Gallery, 1997.109.10A-B
Cup and Saucer
Artist
Date1980
earthenware, stains, and glaze
Not on view
Mineo Mizuno, Square Bowl, 1980, earthenware, stains, and glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Donna and John Donaldson in memory of Jean and John Michael on the occasion of the Fifteenth Anniversary of the James Renwick Alliance and the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the Renwick Gallery, 1997.109.12
Square Bowl
Artist
Date1980
earthenware, stains, and glaze
Not on view
Mineo Mizuno, Cup and Saucer, 1980, earthenware, stains, and glaze, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Donna and John Donaldson in memory of Jean and John Michael on the occasion of the Fifteenth Anniversary of the James Renwick Alliance and the Twenty-fifth Anniversary of the Renwick Gallery, 1997.109.11A-B
Cup and Saucer
Artist
Date1980
earthenware, stains, and glaze
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

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Unidentified, William H. Johnson, Female Nude Lying on Side, ca. 1939-1940, recto: tempera on paper verso: pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.235R-V
Female Nude Lying on Side
Artist
Dateca. 1939-1940
recto: tempera on paper verso: pencil on paper
Not on view
William H. Johnson, Standing Woman in Red Bathing Suit, ca. 1939-1940, tempera and pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.260
Standing Woman in Red Bathing Suit
Artist
Dateca. 1939-1940
tempera and pencil on paper
Not on view
Unidentified (American), William H. Johnson, Semi-Reclining Female Nude, ca. 1939-1940, recto: tempera on paper verso: tempera and pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.261R-V
Semi-Reclining Female Nude
Artist
William H. Johnson
Unidentified (American)
Dateca. 1939-1940
recto: tempera on paper verso: tempera and pencil on paper
Not on view
William H. Johnson, Farm Sketch--Plowing, ca. 1940-1941, tempera and pencil on paper, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Harmon Foundation, 1967.59.481R-V
Farm Sketch – Plowing
Artist
Dateca. 1940-1941
tempera and pencil on paper
Not on view