Explore the Exhibition and legacy of this artwork.
Church developed Niagara with public exhibitions in mind. Between May 1 and 29, 1857, tens of thousands paid 25 cents to view the painting—which was greatly praised by local critics—in a darkened Manhattan gallery in which only the painting was illuminated. Some would spend an hour in front of the painting: "Spectators forgot that they were looking simply at pigment ... The painting became the surrogate of a visit in person to the site." Many artists, writers, and politicians reportedly visited the painting's exhibition, including Horace Greeley, Henry Ward Beecher, George Bancroft, George Ripley,  Charles Anderson Dana, and Fitz James O'Brien. Over a thousand subscriptions to a planned chromolithograph were sold; $30 for an artist's proof and $15 for a print, both in color. Harper's magazine called Niagara "more widely known and admired in this country than any other picture ever painted in America".The painting was shown in England and Scotland in the summer of 1857. After a showing in London, a chromolithograph was made by Day & Son in June, followed by more exhibitions in Glasgow, Manchester, and Liverpool. London's Art-Journal wrote, "No work of its class has ever been more successful: it is truth, obviously and certainly. Considered as a painting, it is a production of rare merit: while admirable as a whole, its parts have been carefully considered and studied; broadly and effectively wrought, yet elaborately finished." Famed art critic John Ruskin was impressed, as reported by Church's friend Bayard Taylor: "The exhibitor told me that Ruskin had just been to see it, and that he had found effects in it which he had been waiting for years to find." Ruskin was said to have marvelled at the rainbow, believing at first that the play of light through a window was projected onto the canvas. In September 1858 Niagara returned to the United States, where, after another New York showing, it travelled to Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Richmond, and New Orleans. Cosmopolitan Art Journal wrote, "The reputation of this work has greatly increased by its English tour. It is now regarded as the finest painting ever executed by any American artist." Another exhibition in New York followed. Niagara was exhibited at the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris, where it won a silver medal and improved the European view of American art. Harper's Weekly wrote, "The European critics declared that the 'Niagara' gave them an entirely new and higher view both of American nature and art.
Church's composition was the first painting from the Hudson River School to be an "instant success". It was uniquely realistic and "without 'manner'", marking the beginning of a new era for Hudson River artists,  such as Jasper Francis Cropsey, Martin Johnson Heade, John Frederick Kensett, Albert Bierstadt, and Régis François Gignoux. Heade especially took to Niagara, which may have influenced some of his choices in canvas size. He wrote, "Church's picture ... far exceeds my expectations; & I don't wonder that Ruskin, after looking at it for half an hour, could only utter 'marvelous'. I look upon it as the most wonderful picture I ever saw."Niagara was sold to the New York art dealers and print sellers Williams, Stevens & Williams—where it was first exhibited—for US$4,500 in 1857, including $2,000 for reproduction rights.  It was acquired at auction in 1861 by the businessman John Taylor Johnston for US$5,000, and then bought at auction in 1876 by William Wilson Corcoran for his Gallery for $12,500, then a record for a painting by an American artist. When the Corcoran closed in 2014, its collection was transferred to the National Gallery of Art, also in Washington, D.C.
Church made two more finished paintings of the Falls. Under Niagara (1862) is now lost, but survives in lithographs, including an overpainted lithograph at Olana. It was a 4-by-6 foot painting said to be completed in a day. The third painting, Niagara Falls, from the American Side, was made in 1867 and is the largest of Church's paintings by surface area.
Fitz James O'Brien Bayard Taylor National Gallery of Art John Taylor Johnston Washington, D.C. George Ripley John Ruskin John Frederick Kensett William Wilson Corcoran Henry Ward Beecher Manhattan Olana Gallery George Bancroft Niagara Falls Martin Johnson Heade Régis François Gignoux Art-Journal Hudson River School Horace Greeley Charles Anderson Dana Jasper Francis Cropsey Albert Bierstadt Niagara Falls, from the American Side Exposition Universelle chromolithograph artist's proof