Artist:
Howard Pyle
(American, 1853 - 1911)
The Nation Makers
Medium: Oil on canvas
Date: ca. 1902
Dimensions:
40 1/4 × 26 in. (102.2 × 66 cm)
Accession number: 84.12
Label Copy:
Howard Pyle created compositions specifically conceived to ignite the viewer’s imagination. One of Pyle’s finest paintings, The Nation Makers demonstrates many of the compositional lessons he passed on to his students. The action-filled scene is tightly cropped, diagonal lines are used to create a feeling of movement, and red highlights lead the viewer’s eye throughout the painting.
The Nation Makers was painted in 1902 during a summer school session near the site of the Revolutionary War’s Battle of Brandywine in Chadds Ford. The painting was not done on commission, nor published to illustrate a specific story that might guide its interpretation. It seems the work was simply Pyle’s inspired response to this historic location.
Pyle considered The Nation Makers among his most important works and, between 1903 and 1908, he sent it on tour to New York, Chicago, Detroit, and Green Bay. In 1903, the publishers of Colliers Weekly secured the painting’s copyright and published it in the magazine’s June 2, 1906, issue as the frontispiece. The Dodge Publishing Company and P.F. Collier & Son both issued prints of the image in 1907 and 1908.
Howard Pyle created compositions specifically conceived to ignite the viewer’s imagination. One of Pyle’s finest paintings, The Nation Makers demonstrates many of the compositional lessons he passed on to his students. The action-filled scene is tightly cropped, diagonal lines are used to create a feeling of movement, and red highlights lead the viewer’s eye throughout the painting.
The Nation Makers was painted in 1902 during a summer school session near the site of the Revolutionary War’s Battle of Brandywine in Chadds Ford. The painting was not done on commission, nor published to illustrate a specific story that might guide its interpretation. It seems the work was simply Pyle’s inspired response to this historic location.
Pyle considered The Nation Makers among his most important works and, between 1903 and 1908, he sent it on tour to New York, Chicago, Detroit, and Green Bay. In 1903, the publishers of Colliers Weekly secured the painting’s copyright and published it in the magazine’s June 2, 1906, issue as the frontispiece. The Dodge Publishing Company and P.F. Collier & Son both issued prints of the image in 1907 and 1908.
Provenanceby June 1904, painting is "controlled" by Colliers (see Howard Pyle to Deborah B. Martin, dated June 11, 1904); Howard Pyle, by May 1908 (see Howard Pyle to Peveril Meigs, Jr., May x, 1908, University of Virginia Library); [?]; by November, 1914, painting had been sold by Macbeth Gallery, New York, NY; [?]; George DuPont Pratt, New York, NY, to 1927; New York State Historical Association, gift of Mr. Pratt, to 1980; (Christie's, New York, NY, Jan. 29, 1980, lot no. 476); (Judy and Alan Goffman Fine Art, Bluebell, Pennsylvania, 1980-84)
Curatorial RemarksFor Macbeth Gallery reference in provenance, see letter N. C. Wyeth to William Macbeth, dated in another hand Nov. 19, 1914, and Robert W. Macbeth to NCW Nov. 20, 1914, both Wyeth Family Archives.
A pioneer in the field of American illustration as both an artist and teacher, Howard Pyle was a major influence on the next generation of illustrators. Pyle began teaching at the Drexel Institute of Art and Science in Philadelphia and later taught in his own Wilmington, Delaware studio. Pyle also led summer sessions in Chadds Ford. His reputation attracted many students, including N. C. Wyeth, Harvey Dunn, Jessie Willcox Smith, and Frank Schoonover.
Pyle preferred historical subjects, including the American Revolution. "The Nation Makers" depicts part of the 1777 Battle of Brandywine and most likely was painted in1902 during a summer school session near the site of the battlefield in Chadds Ford. Not intended as an illustration, the work was Pyle's response to the historic location. Three years later it was published in "Collier's Weekly."
One of Pyle's finest paintings, "The Nation Makers" demonstrates many of the compositional lessons he passed on to his students. The action-filled scene is tightly cropped, diagonal lines are used to create a feeling of movement, and red highlights lead the viewer's eye throughout the painting.
A pioneer in the field of American illustration as both an artist and teacher, Howard Pyle was a major influence on the next generation of illustrators. Pyle began teaching at the Drexel Institute of Art and Science in Philadelphia and later taught in his own Wilmington, Delaware studio. Pyle also led summer sessions in Chadds Ford. His reputation attracted many students, including N. C. Wyeth, Harvey Dunn, Jessie Willcox Smith, and Frank Schoonover.
Pyle preferred historical subjects, including the American Revolution. "The Nation Makers" depicts part of the 1777 Battle of Brandywine and most likely was painted in1902 during a summer school session near the site of the battlefield in Chadds Ford. Not intended as an illustration, the work was Pyle's response to the historic location. Three years later it was published in "Collier's Weekly."
One of Pyle's finest paintings, "The Nation Makers" demonstrates many of the compositional lessons he passed on to his students. The action-filled scene is tightly cropped, diagonal lines are used to create a feeling of movement, and red highlights lead the viewer's eye throughout the painting.
On view