Fort George Island, Florida
1878
Medium
Painting
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Neil M. Judd
Accession Number
1970.73
Tags
About this artwork
In 1877, Thomas Moran traveled with his wife to Fort George Island, Florida, and made small studies of the trees and beaches, images that were radically different from his sweeping vistas of Yellowstone. Within twenty years after this painting was created, the balmy coasts of South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida had become fashionable tourist destinations. The hazy blue sky, palm trees, and golden sand suggest a romantic desert island where people could escape their everyday lives.
About the Artist
Thomas Moran · 1837–1926
Thomas Moran (1837–1926) was an American painter and printmaker of the Hudson River School whose dramatic paintings of the American West played a pivotal role in the creation of the national parks. Born in Bolton, Lancashire, England, he emigrated with his family to Philadelphia as a child. He was largely self-taught, though he apprenticed briefly with a wood engraver and studied the work of J.M.W...