Sunrise in the Woods

Early morning sunlight filters through a dense forest, throwing forms into deep shadow. Details of the composition emerge through careful observation: a figure driving cattle on the left, a fallen log outlined by the raking sunlight, and a large silhouetted tree. By softening contours and blurring forms, Inness evokes a sense of the spiritual essence of the natural world.

Image Caption

George Inness, Sunrise in the Woods, 1887, oil on canvas. Clark Art Institute, gift of Frank and Katherine Martucci, 2013.1.6

Provenance

Possibly the artist; Newman E. Montross, 1849-1932, New York (1887, his sale, Moore’s Art Galleries, 11 March 1887, no. 70); General Samuel Thomas, 1840-1903, New York and Calvin S. Brice, 1845-1898, Ohio and New York (by gift to Sir William van Horne); Sir William van Horne, 1843-1915, Montreal (by 1898-1915); his estate[1] (1915-1973, sale, estate of Sir William van Horne, Sotheby Parke Bernet, New York, 28 Sept. 1973, no. 45); (Sotheby’s, New York, 24 May 1990, no. 49); Frank and Katherine Martucci, New York (1990-2013, by gift to the Clark Art Institute); Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, 2013. [1] Sir William van Horne’s estate line of descent: Lady Adaline van Horne, d. 1929, and Adaline and Richard Benedict, Montreal, his wife and children, by descent (1915-1929); Adaline and Richard Benedict van Horne, d. 1931, Montreal, Sir William’s children, by descent (1929-1931); Adaline van Horne, d. 1941, Montreal, Sir William’s daughter, by descent (1931-1941); William Cornelius Covenhoven van Horne, 1907-1946, her nephew, Richard Benedict’s son, by descent (1941-1946); Margaret van Horne (née Hannon), d. 1987, Montreal, his wife, by descent (1946-1973)