Niagara Falls

George Inness, Niagara Falls, 1885, oil on wood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.67
George Inness, Niagara Falls, 1885, oil on wood, 15 7824 in. (40.260.9 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.67
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Artwork Details

Title
Niagara Falls
Date
1885
Dimensions
15 7824 in. (40.260.9 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of John Gellatly
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on wood
Classifications
Subjects
  • Landscape — waterfall — Niagara Falls
Object Number
1929.6.67

Artwork Description

Niagara Falls is one of the most frequently painted and photographed landscapes in the United States. George Inness produced seven oil paintings of the falls during the 1880s and 1890s, more than he made of any other area at that time. By 1895, the area around Niagara Falls had become commercialized with many hotels, souvenir shops, and attractions. Inness wanted to reclaim the natural "terror and awe" of the falls, and so obliterated all evidence of bridges, hotels, and signs in his paintings.

Works by this artist (6 items)

George Inness, Niagara Falls, 1885, oil on wood, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.67
Niagara Falls
Date1885
oil on wood
On view
George Inness, Niagara, 1889, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of William T. Evans, 1909.7.31
Niagara
Date1889
oil on canvas
On view
George Inness, Sundown, 1884, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of William T. Evans, 1909.7.32
Sundown
Date1884
oil on canvas
On view
George Inness, Elf Ground, ca. 1860, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. George L. Andrews, 1920.2.1
Elf Ground
Dateca. 1860
oil on canvas
Not on view

More Artworks from the Collection

William Holbrook Beard, The Runaway Match, 1877, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase, 1977.55
The Runaway Match
Date1877
oil on canvas
Not on view
John Henry Twachtman, Figure in Sunlight (Artist's Wife), ca. 1890-1900, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly, 1929.6.137
Figure in Sunlight (Artist’s Wife)
Dateca. 1890-1900
oil on canvas
On view
Unidentified (Italian), Saint, 19th century, oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Laura Dreyfus Barney and Natalie Clifford Barney in memory of their mother, Alice Pike Barney, 1952.13.157
Saint
Artist
Unidentified (Italian)
Date19th century
oil on canvas
Not on view