The Genius of America
by Eric Glaser
Title
The Genius of America
Artist
Eric Glaser
Medium
Painting - Oil On Canvas
Description
"The Genius of America"
Artist: Adolphe Yvon (French, 1817-1893)
Title: The Genius of America
Object Type: Painting
Date: 1870
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Dimensions: 29.5 x 18 feet (8,99 m x 5,49 m)
Collection: New York State Education Building, Albany NY USA
Notes: this monumental version is the second version, the smaller one in the St. Louis Art Museum is the original
Description:
The 1870 allegorical mural, The Genius of America, was installed in Chancellors Hall of the New York State Education building in 1953. Measuring 29.5 feet-by-18 feet, the historical painting is a panorama of symbolic figures and objects that reflects sentiments and ideals about the United States at the turn of the 19th Century.
Also:
Adolphe Yvon depicts a symbolic procession celebrating the glory of the United States. In the center, the lady Republic, in white, and the Roman goddess Minerva, robed in white and green, stand on a chariot drawn by lions. In front of the chariot are women who represent several states including New York, Illinois, and Virginia. To the left are European immigrants arriving in America while, to the right, an uplifted African American suggests the artist’s hopes for the abolition of slavery. Native Americans, in the right background, observe the procession. Yvon was a noted official painter who taught in the French Academy for approximately twenty years. This work represents a superior example of the traditional, highly detailed academic style. His depiction of this scene reflects the sensibilities of his time. Yvon’s idealized images contrast with the reality which faced many African Americans and Native Americans in 19th-century America.
Text Credit: Wikimedia, St. Louis Art Museum
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Additional image editing by Eric Glaser
Uploaded
June 20th, 2020
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