By Thomas Birch
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Thomas Birch
(American, born England, 1779-1851)
Winter Landscape, Pennsylvania
Oil on canvas, 18 x 24 inches
FRAMED: 27 x 33 inches (approx.)
Thomas Birch was born in Warwickshire, England, son of the enamel and miniature painter William Russell Birch (1755-1834). He and his father settled in Philadelphia in 1794 and produced popular sets of engravings that documented the city's growth such as The City of Philadelphia (1800) and Country Seats (1808). Thomas Birch began to paint portraits around 1806, and soon gravitated to the subjects that made him famous, landscapes, winter scenes, and marine scenes.
Birch also painted numerous winter scenes throughout his career, perhaps influenced by the popularity of sleighing and skating in Philadelphia. His landscapes represented the more rustic tradition of English painting and although the subject matter was either the Pennsylvania of New Jersey countryside, Birch’s imagination was oriented toward seventeenth century Dutch painting as he was influenced by artists Jan van Goyen and Salomon van Ruysdael.
Birch frequently exhibited his work at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Artists’ Fund Society, formed in 1835. His art was influential in the later development of the Hudson River School of painting and the style of romantic realism...
Category
Early 19th Century Realist Landscape Paintings
