“Mounts Adam and Eve,” by Jasper F. Cropsey, 1872, oil

There is nothing wrong with appreciating the extraordinarily skillful way that 19th century artists captured the drama and beauty of the landscape, but we sometimes forget that the artists who created those paintings were as interested in affirming their personal beliefs as they were in documenting the locations where they set up their easels. “Nineteenth-century artists saw the sacredness of the land, its beauty, its promise, its virtues, its covenant with God,” wrote James F. Cooper in his book Knights of the Brush: The Hudson River School and the Moral Landscape (Hudson Hills Press, New York, 2000). Cooper is the Cultural Studies Center Director at the Newington-Cropsey Foundation.


“The Millennial Age,” by Jasper F. Cropsey, 1854, oil, 38 x 54. Collection The Newington-Cropsey Foundation, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY

“Hudson River School painting puts us in contact with those unique qualities of beauty, spirituality, and virtue that artists provide to make order out of chaos, to make light out of darkness, to make faith out of despair, to make beauty out of ugliness, to make transcendence out of alienation,” Cooper went on to say. “For the Hudson River School painters there was a moral purpose in being an artist.”

Whether one completely agrees with Cooper or not, there is no question that the Newington-Cropsey Foundation has provided a great service in promoting the artwork and career of one of America’s finest painters, Jasper F. Cropsey. Trained as an architect, Cropsey studied watercolor painting and drawing at the National Academy of Design in New York where he later exhibited his paintings and was elected to membership. After working on commissions in Michigan and living in London, Cropsey set up a studio in New York and became well known for his vividly painted autumnal landscapes. He was also one of the founders of what came to be known as the American Watercolor Society.


The Cropsey’s home and studio, Ever Rest, in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York

Unfortunately, was one of many artists whose careers suffered from the changing taste among collectors, and he died in anonymity in 1900. If it wasn’t for concerned collectors and the Newington-Cropsey Foundation, it might now be difficult to appreciate the artists exceptional talents and his dedication to the timeless truths inherent in great art.

Be sure to watch the 15-minute video titled, "James Cropsey's Paintings" featured in the Video section of Outdoor Painter.com.