Sunset Glow

Alternate TitleSunset Glow on Mt. Tamalpais

Artist William Keith (American, born Scotland, 1838 - 1911)

Date1896

MediumOil on canvas

DimensionsUnframed: 36 3/16 x 72 7/16 inches (91.92 x 183.99 cm)
Framed: 51 3/16 x 87 1/4 inches (130.02 x 221.62 cm)

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Ferdinand Heim in memory of Ferdinand Heim

Object number45-22

SignedSigned and dated lower left: W. Keith / S. F. 1896

On View

On view

Gallery Location

Collections

American Art

Terms

Gallery Label

William Keith's Sunset Glow showcases a forested and mountainous California landscape, soon to be shrouded by thick evening cloud cover. A lone hunter in the lower left passes quietly along a winding trail that connects him to the impressive panorama stretching into the distance. Despite the painting's appearance of topographical accuracy, Keith likely composed it in keeping with his belief that "an artist ought to go to nature as a poet does, selecting and combining in order to make his impression the stronger." His subjective approach to painting landscape was influenced by George Inness, whom he met in 1891. Keith's love of nature was also nurtured through his friendship with legendary conservationist John Muir.

Provenance

Ferdinand Heim Jr., Kansas City, Mo., c. 1896;

to Elizabeth R. (Mrs. Ferdinand) Heim, Kansas City, Mo., by bequest, 1943;

to NAMA, 1945.

Published References

Handbook of the Collections in the William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 4^th ed. (Kansas City, Mo.: William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 1959), 256 (as Sunset Glow on Mt. Tamalpais).

Ross E. Taggart and George L. McKenna, eds., Handbook of the Collections in The William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, Kansas City, Missouri, vol. 1, Art of the Occident, 5^th ed. (Kansas City, MO: William Rockhill Nelson Gallery of Art and Mary Atkins Museum of Fine Arts, 1973), 253 (as Sunset Glow on Mt. Tamalpais).

Henry Adams, “William Keith Painting Restored,” Calendar of Events (Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art), September 1985, 4, 6 (as Sunset Glow on Mount Tamalpais).

Henry Adams, Handbook of American Paintings in the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art (Kansas City, Mo.: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 1991), 107–9.

Roger Ward and Patricia J. Fidler, eds. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art: A Handbook of the Collections. 6^th ed. (New York: Hudson Hills Press, in association with Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 1993), 228, 241.

Michael Churchman and Scott Erbes, High Ideals and Aspirations: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art 1933–1993 (Kansas City, Mo.: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 1993), 64.

Margaret C. Conrads, ed. The Collections of the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art: American Paintings to 1945 (Kansas City, Mo.: The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2007), 1: 361–363, 2: 149–150.

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