Existing comment:
Joshua Shaw, American, born England, ca. 1777 - 1860 (Artist)
Natural Bridge No.1: View from the Arch of the Bridge Looking down the Creek, Rockbridge County, Virginia (Primary Title), ca. 1820
This gemlike painting belongs to a series of eight oils of southern landscapes by the Anglo-American artist, author, traveler, and inventor Joshua Shaw. He envisioned painting a number of key American scenes to be turned into prints for sale to the country's burgeoning middle class, but the money ran out before all of his images, including this one, could be issued. The published version, Picturesque Views of American Scenery, remains the earliest, most comprehensive aquatint portfolio of landscapes and landmarks ever produced in the United States.
Unlike most depictions of Virginia's celebrated natural wonder, Shaw's vista is from the top of the bridge with an emphasis on the picturesque landscape of Rockbridge County below. The figure who leans precariously over the ledge may be the artist, if not his fifteen-year-old son, who traveled with him. Like many subsequent painters (including Jervis McEntee, whose on-the-spot sketch of the Natural Bridge is on view in an adjacent gallery), Shaw recorded his thoughts about the geological site, finding it "a delightful spot for thought and contemplation, shut out from the noise and bustle of man." |