Tree Trunks

c. 1860s

David Johnson

Associated Names
David Johnson

Artist, American, 1827 - 1908

The image shows a large, old tree with gnarled and twisted branches extending into empty space. The horizon is not visible. The artist employed a style of sketching, with lines creating a textured depiction of the bark and branches. The background is unadorned, highlighting the tree. The color palette consists of brown and gray against a tan canvas. Twigs and branches extend around the tree, with shading enhancing the dimensionality.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

(The Old Print Shop, New York); Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1949; acquired 2015 by the National Gallery of Art

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1968

  • John F. Kensett, American Federation of the Arts, New York (traveling exhibition), 1968-1969

1979

  • Sketches by Contemporaries of Frederic E. Church, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1979

1983

  • American Master Drawings from the Collection, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1983

1988

  • Meditations on Nature: The Drawings of David Johnson, Hudson River Museum of Westchester, New York, 1988, p. 48, fig. 24, repro

Bibliography

1983

  • Simmons, Linda Crocker and with the assistance of Adrianne J. Humphrey, et al. American Drawings, Watercolors, Pastels, and Collages in the Collection of the Corcoran Gallery of Art. Washington, DC: Corcoran Gallery of Art, 1983: p. 41, no. 290.

Inscriptions

lower right in graphite by unknown hand: A; upper left verso in graphite by unknown hand: T. L. 6558. A-59; upper right verso in graphite by unknown hand: 18422

Wikidata ID

Q64540813

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