Catskill Clove (from Sketchbook)
ca. 1860–ca. 1864
Medium
Graphite on beige paper
Dimensions
9 3/4 x 13 7/8 in. (24.8 x 35.2 cm)
Classification
Drawing
Culture
American
Department
The American Wing
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Sheila and Richard J. Schwartz Fund and Gifts in memory of Stephen D. Rubin, 1992
Accession Number
1992.373.15 verso
Tags
Art Historical Context
Thomas Hewes Hinckley's *Catskill Clove ( Sketchbook)*, created around 1860–1864, captures the rugged beauty of New York's Catskill Mountains, a region celebrated in 19th-century American art its dramatic valleys—or "cloves"—and towering peaks. Drawn during the Civil War era, graphite sketch on beige paper reflects the era's growing appreciation for the American wilderness as a symbol of national identity and sublime natural power, evoking the spirit of the Hudson River, though Hinckley was known his precise, observational landscapes. Rendered in graphite on toned beige paper (9 3/4 x 13 7/8 ...
About the Artist
Thomas Hewes Hinckley · 1813–1896
Thomas Hewes Hinckley (1813–1896) was an American painter who became one of the leading specialists in animal painting in the United States during the mid-nineteenth century. Born in Milton, Massachusetts, he was largely self-taught in his early years, developing his skills through sustained observation of animals in the field and study of European masters whose work he encountered in reproduction...