Frederic
Remington,The Old Stage–Coach of the Plains, 1901, Amon Carter
Museum, Fort Worth, Texas
The Old Stage–Coach of the Plains is one of Remington's most dramatic early nocturnes. Against a starry night sky, the candlelit coach tumbles forward into the viewer’s space. A guard, his rifle poised, sits atop the coach scanning the horizon for danger, again, undefined.
Critics quickly took notice of Remington’s
nocturnes and applauded his efforts, but the artist himself remained discouraged
by what he perceived as his inability to capture accurately the colors
of night. In 1905 he expressed his frustration to a friend: “I’ve
been trying to get color in my things and still I don’t get it.
Why why why can’t I get it. The only reason I can find is that I’ve
worked too long in black and white. I know fine color when I see it but
I just don’t get it and it’s maddening.
I’m going to if I only live long enough.”
