A Gorge in the Mountains (Kauterskill Clove) by Sanford Robinson Gifford - 1862 - 121.9 x 101.3 cm Metropolitan Museum of Art A Gorge in the Mountains (Kauterskill Clove) by Sanford Robinson Gifford - 1862 - 121.9 x 101.3 cm Metropolitan Museum of Art

A Gorge in the Mountains (Kauterskill Clove)

Oil on canvas • 121.9 x 101.3 cm
  • Sanford Robinson Gifford - 1823 - 1880 Sanford Robinson Gifford 1862

Happy first day of Autumn, everyone!

Sanford Robinson Gifford was the only prominent Hudson River School painter to have grown up in the Catskills region of New York, an area made famous by Thomas Cole, the founding figure of the school. Unlike earlier artists who focused on central mountains or waterfalls, Gifford emphasized light and atmosphere as seen from Kauterskill (Kaaterskill) Clove in the eastern Catskill Mountains. This approach shifted the focus from the sublime to the meditative. In his painting, a hunter and his dog climb the rocks on the left (please zoom in to spot them; they are hardly seen), blending into the landscape as they head to the platform overlooking the ravine, which is illuminated by an Indian summer haze. 

Today is the first day of Autumn, but why not think about the first day of 2025? Don't be surprised in January; go ahead and purchase one of our DailyArt 2025 paper calendars, which are now available on -25% presale.

P.S. See the best paintings of Hudson River School, the uniquely American art movement that showcased the beauty of North American nature. For more, see the articles below.