How does Niagara Falls, from the American Side elucidate its History?
Church made his first painting of the falls in 1857. He had visited the falls several times in July and late August the previous year, making a number of pencil and oil sketches from different points of view. He elected to paint the scene from the Canadian side, choosing unconventional dimensions for the painting that emphasized the panoramic effect.This first painting was an immediate success, attracting over 100,000 visitors within the first fortnight of its premiere at a New York gallery. Following this, it was exhibited at major cities on the Eastern seaboard, toured Britain twice and was selected for the 1867 Exposition Universelle in Paris. It was purchased by the recently founded Corcoran Gallery of Art in 1876, cementing that institution's success. When the Corcoran closed in 2014, its collection was gifted to the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.Niagara Falls, from the American Side was commissioned from Church by the American art dealer Michael Knoedler in 1866. It was the third painting of the series and may have been originally destined for the Exposition. Like many of Church's works of the 1850s and 1860s, it was exhibited in New York City, and then sent to London, where a chromolithograph was made. In 1887 the painting was purchased by John S. Kennedy, who gifted it to his homeland of Scotland. Niagara Falls, from the American Side is the only major work by Frederic Edwin Church which is in a public collection in Europe.
Corcoran Gallery of Art his first painting John S. Kennedy National Gallery of Art Frederic Edwin Church Niagara sketches 1867 Exposition Universelle Niagara Falls National Gallery of Art, Washington chromolithograph