Landscape Painting "Path in the White Mountains" (1876) by Christopher Shearer

View Similar Items

Framed Oil Landscape Painting of a Forest Path and Distant Mountains

Painting "Mountain landscape in winter"

Painting "Mountain landscape"

Painting "Cottage in the Mountains"

Mountain Landscape Painting by Frank Myers

German Painting with Mountain Landscape

Antique Mountain River Landscape Painting

Landscape Painting, Mountain Landscape Painting, Oil on Canvas, XX

"Landscape with Stream, " Centennial-Era Pastoral Oil Painting by Wilson, 1876

“Forest Path” 19th C. English Landscape Painting by William Shayer

"On the War Path" Original Painting by Sheryl Bodily

Want more images or videos?

Request additional images or videos from the seller

1 of 21

Landscape Painting "Path in the White Mountains" (1876) by Christopher Shearer

About the Item

A vibrant landscape with a high-chroma palette that immediately draws the viewer in, pigment is layered with a heavy impasto and energetic brush work, creating a fine balance between an impressionistic surface and an academic sense of perfect realism. There are exciting tonal qualities to the scene, the trees and foliage wrapping up and around the path creating a sharp contrast between the well-lit forest floor in the lower half and the dark shadows and murky chaos of nature above. This contributes to the tunnel-like effect Shearer creates for the viewer, where the eye is immediately taken on an adventure with the two figures along the path; it winds into the distance, eventually bringing the wanderer to the bright peaks of the mountains in the distance. The work is executed in oil on canvas, the original lining remaining in excellent condition; it is housed in a giltwood composition frame, probably the original frame for the painting. In the lower right quadrant the painting is signed "C.H. Shearer 1876", the same year he began exhibiting at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. The reverse of the painting has two labels, one on the stretchers from the retailer of canvases and artistic supplies, the other noting the painting's loan to an unknown Fine Arts Department as no. 233. Christopher High Shearer (AMERICAN, 1846-1926) Born in Reading, Pennsylvania on May 18th of 1846, Christopher Shearer grew up spending a great deal of time in the studios of painters John Heyl Raser and Francis Daniel Devlan, becoming a serious student of both artists at the age of 18. A few years later in 1867 he opened his studio in Reading, Pennsylvania where he began selling his paintings locally; by the age of 27 he was recognized nationally for his landscape work. Having achieved some financial success, he traveled to Europe where studied in both Munich and Düsseldorf and spent time in Paris. He began exhibiting at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in 1876 where he continued to exhibit until 1895. He returned to Europe in 1878, spending two years in Germany where he was awarded a Gold Medal by the Düsseldorf School of Art and the rest of his time in Paris. During this trip he would lose almost all of his eyesight, forcing a return to Reading where he purchased a home along the Schuylkill River with his second wife. There his eyesight gradually improved and eventually he was able to return to painting. In 1881, Shearer exhibited at the National Academy of Design, at which time he reported his address as being 824 Arch Street in Philadelphia. Here he exhibited two works, Graefenberg, Germany (no. 511) and Hay Stacks (no. 680). Shearer was an advocate of the arts in Reading, holding art classes in his home studio and teaching plein-air painting locally. In 1913, after having been convinced by Shearer to include an art gallery in the Reading Public Museum, Dr. Levi Mengel appointed Shearer to the role of Curator for the fine arts, an appointment he held until his death in 1926. Artist Listings & Bibliography: E. Benezit Dictionary of Artists, Vol. XII, Gründ, 2006, p. 1099 Exhibition of the National Academy 1861-1900, Kennedy Galleries, 1973 Measurements: 52 1/8" H x 44 3/4" W x 4 1/2" D [frame]; 36" H x 29 1/4" W [canvas] Condition Report: Period frame, perhaps the first frame for the painting; gilding is discolored and with chipping/wear and later inpainting, missing bead lower left (this can be inpainted upon request). Surface of the painting is bright and clean, presenting beautifully throughout. Light craquelure. Very minor edge wear where the frame can rub the surface. Inpainting to the child figure in the distance (approximately 1/2" diameter), otherwise surface appears to be without inpainting.

Dimensions:
Height: 52.13 in (132.42 cm)Width: 44.75 in (113.67 cm)Depth: 4.5 in (11.43 cm)
Style:
Barbizon School (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Canvas,Giltwood,Paint,Hand-Painted
Place of Origin:
United States
Period:
19th Century
Date of Manufacture:
Unknown
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use. Minor losses. See condition notes in description text.
Seller Location:
Shippensburg, PA
Reference Number:
Seller: 106WHP09A1stDibs: LU1059024543942