By William Weaver Armstrong
Located in Soquel, CA
Indians in a Canoe on Lake Tahoe with Snow Covered Mountains - 19th Century Oil
Impressionistic rendering of Lake Tahoe by American landscape painter William Weaver Armstrong (b. 1862 d. 1906.) In the foreground, a lone Indian holding a rifle stands looking out over Lake Tahoe on a path surrounded by evergreens and other alpine brush; in the distance are Indians with Eagle feather head dresses (painted in red for effect) in a canoe traversing the Lake. The foliage and figure are rendered with visible and expressive brushstrokes, with vibrant orange and yellow highlights on the figure. Behind this piece of land is Lake Tahoe and the snow covered Sierra mountains in the distance. On the lake there is a canoe with four people sitting in it, their reflections visible on the water. The lake and mountains in the distance are rendered in a smoother style than the foreground, with more blended brushstrokes and colors. The sky is clear and painted a pale blue color with strong cyan tones. The Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California are the original, aboriginal people of the Lake Tahoe Basin, known as dáɁaw (the lake) to them, a land they've inhabited for millennia, expertly managing resources and using controlled burns for healthy forests before European settlement. They are organized into bands, including the Welmélti, páwalu, and huŋalélti, and their deep spiritual and cultural connection to the lake.
Signed "W. W. Armstrong" in bottom right corner.
Titled "Lake Taho Cal" by the artist on stretcher bars.
Canvas size: 30" H x 50" W
William Weaver Armstrong was born in Ontario, New York in 1862, during the first year of the American Civil War. His father was also a painter and taught him as a child. When Armstrong was 12 years old, his family moved west and eventually settled in Oakland, California. He was raised in Oakland and eventually became a painter based out of the city, being listed so by the Oakland City Directory in 1887. He made frequent trips around California, painting the landscape from Santa Cruz to the Northern border with Oregon. He also owned a carriage painting...
Category
Late 19th Century American Impressionist Figurative Paintings
MaterialsCotton Canvas, Oil, Stretcher Bars
