Snow in the Foothills

Object Details

Artist

Willard L. Metcalf, born Lowell, MA 1858-died New York City 1925

Luce Center Label

Willard Metcalf captured the New England countryside as it thaws to make way for spring. Dabs of brown and ocher suggest muddy grass emerging from the snow cover, and quick strokes of aqua animate the sky, evoking winter's chill, even on a promising day. To capture such moments, Metcalf pulled his painting equipment behind him on a sled, braving the New England winter to study the magical, fleeting qualities of the season. In 1903 the art critic Sadakichi Hartmann described winter as "the most intellectual of all seasons . . . it is the time of the fullest and the freest flow of thought and bright ideas." But in Snow in the Foothills, Metcalf was clearly inspired by the moment when the long dark season unmistakably gives way to the time to be outdoors.

Credit Line

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of John Gellatly

ca. 1920-1925

Object number

1929.6.76

Restrictions & Rights

CC0

Type

Painting

Medium

oil on canvas

Dimensions

29 3/8 x 33 1/8 in. (74.5 x 84.1 cm.)

See more items in

Smithsonian American Art Museum Collection

Department

Painting and Sculpture

Smithsonian American Art Museum

Topic

Landscape\tree

Landscape\river

Landscape\mountain

Landscape\season\winter

Landscape\weather\snow

Record ID

saam_1929.6.76

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/vk7946c4ce3-e666-436e-ab83-ab8d2df4cbe5