A beautiful day presented by American luminous artist William Trost Richards, one in which everything is going right. For a painting to be universally considered a top work, it must hold a broad appeal, yet possess an unquantifiable sense of originality and perfection. Undeniably, this is a superior coastal seascape. Richards has painted a captivating seascape abundant with true marine color. The cool shore line glistens, with translucent light cutting through the face of the small waves. The reflective light is of such accomplishment that the visual images stirs firsthand remembrances of the sounds and sensations from our individual memories of the seashore.

The dramatic devices of the horizon-holding small sailboat, and the beach remains of a less fortunate boat are a conceptual idea that Richards shares with many of the best 19TH Century American marine artists, including A.T. Bricher and F.A. Silva. What is so outstandingly unique is Richards’ touch in this specific instance to illuminate the heavens in such an intricately detailed and layered manner. The sun’s focal draw is perfectly balanced yet unobtrusive. The clouds have movement and depth, and the overall sensation of a cool wet day along the coast is well understood. Richards in his later career painted almost exclusively seascapes, and exhibited many of them within the annual exhibits of the National Academy of Design, where he was elected a full member in 1871. This is a beautiful seascape in an unusual and desirable vertical format by this recognized master.

A warm day on the lake caught the eye of Albert Bierstadt in the northern Alps region of Italy. A couple on an outing have moored their boat and sit in the cool shade of a shore enclosure, topped with the Italian national flag. Other boaters at leisure on the lake are further out in a lanteen-rig sailboat and an unusual canopied oared craft of sorts with it sail down.

Under the expanse of high-elevation sky with reaching atmospheric clouds, the volcanic crag-tops of the mountain range identify the area as well as the flag does. Nice detailed touches as the soft white blooms in one of the small willow trees signals the direction of wind ever-so-slightly. The subtle direction of Bierstadt’s art in the years following, when he discovers the impressive vistas of the American West, is evident here. Echoing his academy studies in Europe, he uses shape and shade to define his subjects, with degrees of softer presence to show distance. This shows the significant evolutionary path of his art, when put against the American panoramas of large scale with their myriad levels of tight detail, deep shadows and tonal range. The artist achieved a level of popularity during career that few artists ever know, and it is on the strength of his early paintings and absolute dedication to his profession that his success was built.

The strength of coloration prominent in this painting is imaginably as vivid as when it was painted in the 19TH Century by the highly esteemed J.E.C. Petersen. The composition of shoreline rocks interplaying with the strict horizon and the ships sailing by and large with the apparently stiff breeze, displaying its off-shore direction upon the white caps’ spray. The closest ship, a brigantine, has a sharper sag to its hull than the barkentine beyond. In all, an arguable 14 ships are within the painted confines of the vast sea.

A contrast of the natural states of matter - gas, liquid, and solid; sky, ocean, and rocks - harmoniously present, with the sailing ships in action. Petersen’s window to the east Coast is not specifically located, but harkens one to think of Black Rock at low tide, just outside of Gloucester, or quite possibly Brant Point, Nahant; looking south. Petersen is known to have painted both of these locations during his too brief American career.

No matter the spot, Petersen has stepped toward the realm of the best American “wet landscape” artists, offering substantial comparisons to the realistic depths of John Frederick Kensett, Martin Johnson Heade’s aggressive luminous coloration, and Alfred Thompson Bricher’s sense of composition.

Warmth and light casts down from the bright sun above in this canal scene of architecture and charm. The relaxed pace of a gondolier and his passengers over a small waterway sets the easy mood amongst the villas. The artist perfected his sense of perspective distance within this painting, from the close shadows and slick reflective water to the sense that the scene ends with the rising dual domes of Santa Maria della Salute, in the ducal courtyard square.

The detailed care the artist instilled in the smallest soft details, such as the twig-thin branches holding small clusters of leaves, and the laid-brick in dynamic complement to the smooth plaster walls, giving the overall scene an incredibly realistic look and appeal. The dynamics of color and light serve to draw viewers along to all the intended focal highlights: the shadowed arch, bright buildings, the blue expanse of sky, the strolling figures and finally back to the boatman in the canal.

Many period artists chose to depict the ancient nature of Venice, with illusions of her past grandeur when compared with the city of their moment. This artist portrays the living, vibrant city he experienced, full of warmth and activity. While it is signed Rico and is of undeniable quality, the specific hand that painted this - we are strongly leaning towards Ruben Santoro - has yet to be fully ascertained.

Provenance: Private Newport, Rhode Island Collection.

A tranquil view of an American northeast beach, it is a work which wins over with its beautiful luminosity, color and light. A well dressed couple, with three others a bit more distant, enjoy a long pause to admire the majesty of the ocean, the ships sailing upon the water and the view of Long Island Sound from the Connecticut shore. A beached lifeboat dory holds its position between the dune grass and the shore break under a magnificent sky of clouds and colors.

Silva strove to paint an overall composition in which to express a sense of relaxed enjoyment, perfecting the content with subtle manipulation of soft light and bare touches of an emerging luminous atmosphere. These qualities often set his paintings apart from other artists. He would travel extensively along the Eastern seaboard in search of inspirational subjects. Note the care he used to portray the wind-driven clouds into different layers and shapes, showing a great sense of distance within the oil painting. Silva would revisit this setting over the years; this is a fine version from the artist’s best period with the desired colorful, glowing hues which are found only in his finest accomplishments.

A brisk morning paddle by a local Hawaiian man brings his outrigger into the serene waters of the Wailoa River from Hilo Bay, and artist David Howard Hitchcock was there to capture it for our pleasure. The radiant scene is of the breaking dawn’s light over Mauna Kea, “White Mountain” in the Hawaiian language, as it’s topped with a seasonal snow cap. Mauna Kea is the predominant dormant volcano of the Big Island, and is actually the largest mountain in the world when measured from its base some 20,000 feet down to the sea floor. It’s still the highest elevation in the Hawaiian Islands at 13,796 feet.

The protective expanse of the Wailoa River (today a protected State Park) on the southeast coast led partially to Hilo becoming a primary port of trade along with Honolulu for the islands, and in King Kamehameha’s rule it was his center of his political empire, where he built his fleet to carry his conquest to the other people of the Islands. In this moment, this is solely a Hawaiian scene by a Hawaiian artist. The water ripples and echoes the colorful swirls from on high, and the foliage tucks away one small home in its lush growth. A beauty of an early Hawaiian painting by Hitchcock.