American Harvesting
| Artist | Jasper Francis Cropsey (American, 1823–1900) |
|---|---|
| Title | American Harvesting |
| Date | 1851 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | Overall: 35 1/2 × 52 3/4 in. (90.2 × 134 cm) Framed: 45 × 63 1/2 × 5 in. (114.3 × 161.3 × 12.7 cm) |
| Credit Line | Gift of Mrs. Nicholas H. Noyes, Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University |
| Accession Number | 69.93 |
| This artwork is currently on view. | |
A horizontal view of a cultivated landscape framed by trees on both sides of the composition. A fence stretches across the center of the composition. A home sits alongside a body of water and a harvested field populated with a few figures.
Jasper Francis Cropsey was a leading member of the Hudson River School, the first recognizably American school of painting. American Harvesting, with its orderly progression from once-primeval forest to rich farmland and distant mountains, presents an iconic image of the rural American landscape. In the background, the light breaking through the western clouds is a commentary on the widespread belief that America’s westward expansion—often described as manifest destiny—was a divine right. Cropsey displayed this painting at the 1851 exhibition of the American Art-Union to great acclaim.
Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.
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"American Harvesting | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=69.93