CINCINNATI, OH.- Majestic mountains. Tranquil valleys. Enchanting forests. Shimmering lakes. Luminous skies. These inspiring images of America are hallmarks of the Hudson River School, our nation’s first major artistic movement. A stunning array of over 40 paintings from the New-York Historical Society’s collection by renowned Hudson River School artists are on view at the Taft Museum of Art from October 5 – January 12, 2020 in the exhibition, The Poetry of Nature: Hudson River School Landscapes from the New-York Historical Society.

These artists’s views of nature forged an essential part of America’s national identity as people sought respite from rapidly expanding cities during an age of industrial progress during the mid to late 19th century. Works by well-known painters including Thomas Cole, Asher B. Durand, Jasper Francis Cropsey, and Sanford Robinson Gifford join lesser-known gems by Louisa Davis Minot and William Louis Sonntag—who began his career in Cincinnati—to paint a picture of America’s promise embodied in landscape.

“We are pleased to present these treasures from the New-York Historical Society, which holds one of the nation’s most extensive collections of Hudson River School paintings,” said Deborah Emont Scott, the Taft’s Louise Taft Semple President/CEO. “We hope that visitors are moved by these beautiful works, created by artists who believed that nature held personal and spiritual restorative powers.”

In conjunction with the exhibition, the Taft Museum of Art is organizing a wide range of public programs that will examine numerous aspects of this influential movement in American art. A complete list of offerings may be found at taftmuseum.org, however highlighted programs and installations include:

• Lecture by Dr. Linda S. Ferber, museum director emerita of the New-York Historical Society and leading authority on the Hudson River School, on Thursday, November 21, 6:30p Free. Reservations required.

• Poetry writing workshop with Cincinnati based poet Elese Daniel. $30 members, $40 non-members. Reservations required.

• An interactive educational experience that evokes responses to the landscape through hearing, seeing, and touching will round out the exhibition, with contributions by Zac Greenberg and Debbie Brod. Free, included with general admission.

• In the Taft’s Sinton Gallery, Fearful Symmetry, a multimedia installation by artist Alice Pixley Young draws inspiration from landscape works. Free, included with general admission, Aug. 30–Dec. 1.

• The winners from a haiku contest, partnering with Cincinnati Parks, will adorn the hallway connecting the Fifth Third Gallery, where The Poetry of Nature is on display, and the historic house, where the Taft Museum’s permanent collection is located.

The Poetry of Nature has been organized by the New-York Historical Society. Prior to opening in Cincinnati this exhibition was at the Brandywine River Museum of Art and the Wichita Art Museum.