Picturing America: Thomas Cole and the Birth of American Art

Gr 2–4—Few artists have been able to capture the magic and timeless beauty of the U.S. landscape better than Thomas Cole. He loved to draw from a young age, and when his family settled in Pennsylvania from England, Cole continued to sharpen his artistic skills. Life was a struggle for the family, but he nevertheless pursued his dream of becoming an artist, eventually traveling to New York City to integrate himself into the bustling arts community there. But he longed for the rolling hills of England, so he made his way up through the Hudson River Valley, and history was made: Cole was so captivated by the beauty and majesty of the Catskills landscape that it became the subject of his work and made him the founder of the Hudson River School art movement. As industrialization continued, Cole's art inspired viewers to appreciate and conserve our country's natural lands. The book offers excellent reproductions of Cole's work: text, illustrations, and reproductions combine to trace the evolution of Cole's art and the progression of the Hudson River Movement, including its implications for modern art.