Grand Canyon, 1912. Thomas Moran. Oil on pressboard. Bequest of Katherine Harvey.
Thomas Moran painted the modest yet arresting Grand Canyon in his New Jersey studio from sketches made during five visits to the national landmark. For this view of the legendary chasm, Moran painted the distant striated buttes with an increasingly lighter palette and less detail, thereby creating the convincing illusion of deep space.
Although the geological wonder was a prime tourist destination by the turn of the century, Moran erased all evidence of human activity. Man's presence in the region is confirmed, however, through the painter's inscription at the lower right dedicating the work to the director of the Kansas City-based Fred Harvey Company, a hospitality provider that welcomed thousands of visitors to the canyon, including Moran.
