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The Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon

Artist/Maker (American, 1837–1926)
Date1909
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsOverall: 20 1/8 × 16 in. (51.1 × 40.6 cm)
Frame: 27 7/8 × 23 1/8 × 2 in. (70.8 × 58.7 × 5.1 cm)
Credit LineGift of Mrs. John A. Hadden in memory of Mrs. Francis F. Prentiss
Object number1981.41
Status
On view
More Information
Moran made his first trip to the Grand Canyon in 1873. A subsequent trip to the area in 1892 was sponsored by the Santa Fe Railroad in exchange for the right to reproduce one of Moran's paintings on their travel posters and calendars. Moran's popular views of the Grand Canyon and other famous sites exploited the dramatic potential of deep canyons and fantastic rock formations, vibrant colors and subtle transformations of light. He fully acknowledged the subjectivity of his compositions: "While I desired to tell truly of nature, I did not wish to realize the scene literally, but to preserve and convey its true impression."
Exhibition History
New Acquisitions, 1981-1983
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (July 1, 1983 - October 9, 1983 )
American Paintings and Sculpture
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (April 30, 1985 - August 18, 1985 )
American Landscapes and Tromp L'Oeil from the Permanent Collection
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (December 5, 1986 - February 1, 1987 )
Landscape in the 19th Century: Observation and Interpretation
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (February 20, 1990 - April 29, 1990 )
Selections from the Permanent Collection: Landscape
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (June 15, 1993 - August 19, 1993 )
Kim Abeles: American Air
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (February 12, 1994 - May 1, 1994 )
Changing Visions of the North American Landscape
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (October 24, 2000 - January 28, 2001 )
Figure to Non-Figurative: The Evolution of Modern Art in Europe and North America, 1830-1950
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (August 23, 2002 - June 9, 2003 )
Art and Life in Early America
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (September 2, 2014 - June 28, 2015 )
Objects of Encounter: American Myths of Place
  • Allen Memorial Art Museum, Oberlin, OH (July 5, 2022 - December 23, 2022 )
Collections
  • Modern & Contemporary
  • On View
This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator. Noticed a mistake? Have some extra information about this object? Please contact us.