United States Capitol, Washington D.C.
Architect of the Capitol
http://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/other-paintings-and-murals/westward-course-empire-takes-its-way
George Caleb Bingham drew from Christian and classical imagery to justify and heroicize westward expansion and the ideal of Manifest Destiny, or the providential mission of the American nation to settle the frontier.
Referring to Boone's first journeys into Kentucky in the early 1770s, the group is pictured traveling from east to west, dramatically emerging from the sun-filled landscape in the background and crossing into the dark, foreboding landscape in the foreground, where the snarled trees help signify the dangerous power of nature.
Portrayed with idealized features and poses, the intrepid Daniel Boone, a rifle resting on his shoulder, suggests the figure of Moses - an archetype for pioneer patriarchs - leading his people toward the Promised Land, while Rebecca Boone, atop the horse, suggests the Virgin Mary, symbolizing the courageous spirit of pioneer women.
]]>This is a popular American painting addressing the theme of westward expansion. Rich with symbolism, it helped establish the mythic status of Daniel Boone and legends of western settlement.
George Caleb Bingham drew from Christian and classical imagery to justify and heroicize westward expansion and the ideal of Manifest Destiny, or the providential mission of the American nation to settle the frontier.
Referring to Boone's first journeys into Kentucky in the early 1770s, the group is pictured traveling from east to west, dramatically emerging from the sun-filled landscape in the background and crossing into the dark, foreboding landscape in the foreground, where the snarled trees help signify the dangerous power of nature.
Portrayed with idealized features and poses, the intrepid Daniel Boone, a rifle resting on his shoulder, suggests the figure of Moses - an archetype for pioneer patriarchs - leading his people toward the Promised Land, while Rebecca Boone, atop the horse, suggests the Virgin Mary, symbolizing the courageous spirit of pioneer women.
Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum
Washington University in St. Louis
http://www.kemperartmuseum.wustl.edu/collection/explore/artwork/193
Over the course of fifty years, almost 400,000 people traveled the 2,170-mile route, leaving their farms along the East Coast in hopes of securing fertile land in the Oregon Territory.
American artist Albert Bierstadt documented his journey on the trail, capturing the dramatic panoramas and indomitable spirit of the emigrants on his oversized canvases. With their rich colors and pristine details, these romanticized images roused an already fascinated American public to begin their own westward adventure.
]]>Redefined by territorial expansion in the mid-1800s, the boundary of the American West shifted from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean, fueled largely by exploration and emigration along the Oregon Trail, among others.
Over the course of fifty years, almost 400,000 people traveled the 2,170-mile route, leaving their farms along the East Coast in hopes of securing fertile land in the Oregon Territory.
American artist Albert Bierstadt documented his journey on the trail, capturing the dramatic panoramas and indomitable spirit of the emigrants on his oversized canvases. With their rich colors and pristine details, these romanticized images roused an already fascinated American public to begin their own westward adventure.
Oil on canvas
67" x 102"
This painting has come to represent the ideal of Manifest Destiny.
This painting is an allegorical representation of the modernization of the new west. Here Columbia, a personification of the United States, leads civilization westward with American settlers, stringing telegraph wire as she sweeps west; she holds a school book as well. The different stages of economic activity of the pioneers are highlighted and, especially, the changing forms of transportation.
This painting has come to represent the ideal of Manifest Destiny.
Museum of the American West
Griffith Park, Los Angeles, CA
Oil painting
12 ¾” x 16 ¾”
Library of Congress
Prints and Photographs Division
Washington, D.C.
As De Soto and his troops approach, the Native Americans in front of their tepees watch, and a chief holds out a peace pipe. In the foreground is a jumble of weapons and soldiers, suggesting the attack they had suffered shortly before. To the right, a monk prays as a crucifix is set in the ground.
]]>This dramatic and brilliantly colored canvas shows Spanish conqueror and explorer Hernando DeSoto, riding a white horse, the first European to view the Mississippi River, in 1541.
As De Soto and his troops approach, the Native Americans in front of their tepees watch, and a chief holds out a peace pipe. In the foreground is a jumble of weapons and soldiers, suggesting the attack they had suffered shortly before. To the right, a monk prays as a crucifix is set in the ground.
United States Capitol, Washington D.C.
Architect of the Capitol
http://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/historic-rotunda-paintings/discovery-mississippi-by-de-soto
Oil painting on canvas
365.76 cm by 548.64 cm (144.00 in by 216.00 in)
Daniel Boone is pointing out toward the west, and the future state of Kentucky.
Indianapolis Museum of Art
Indianapolis, Indiana
Mr. Grayson became very wealthy in the West and commissioned this painting to tell his family’s story. He gave specific instructions to the artist, William Jewett, about the clothing, the setting, and other details in the portrait.
The people shown are the Graysons, and they were part of the great westward expansion of the United States during the mid-1800s.The Graysons traveled overland from Missouri to California in 1846, two years ahead of the Gold Rush that drew so many more fortune seekers to California.
Mr. Grayson became very wealthy in the West and commissioned this painting to tell his family’s story. He gave specific instructions to the artist, William Jewett, about the clothing, the setting, and other details in the portrait.
Terra Foundation for American Art
Daniel J. Terra Collection
Chicago, Illinois
Oil on canvas
50 3/4" by 64"
The Elizabeth Waldo-Dentzel Collection
Elizabeth Waldo-Dentzel Studio
Northridge, California
Oil on canvas
25.25 × 36.375 in (64.1 × 92.4 cm)
Museum of the American West
Los Angeles, CA
Oil on canvas
Height: 64.8 cm (25.51 in.)
Width: 116.8 cm (45.98 in.)