Art of the Parks: Celebrating 100 Years of the National Park Service

The Rockwell presents Art of the National Parks, an new self-guided tour that marks the centennial celebration for the National Park Service, which created nature destinations such as Yosemite, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Grand Canyon, and Glacier national parks. 

Art has been part of the history of national parks since the 1870s when Hudson River School painters captured majestic Western landscapes. Through their awe-inspiring works, the public came to see these special places in America for the first time. The works captured their imaginations, spurring them to preserve these lands for future generations. Visitors are invited to learn first-hand how Hudson River School artists and their successors documented America’s majesty and influenced the preservation of our land.

The tour, which continues throughout 2016, will feature art that exemplifies the parks, as well as artists who were instrumental in building public support for the creation of the National Park Service such as Albert Bierstadt And Thomas Hill.  Art of the National Parks includes pieces from Hudson River School painters and Western landscape artists, as well as artists from other important movements within American art. The self-guided tour of the exhibition reveals how early explorer artists like George Catlin and Karl Bodmer documented America’s majesty and used art to influence preservation back in Washington, D.C.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.