The River Road

Martin was a transitional figure in American landscape painting during the second half of the nineteenth century. Along with other artists, he was a link between painters of the Hudson River School, the American followers of the French Barbizon artists, and eventually Impressionism. He is known for his melancholy scenes and poetic landscapes with subtle color and treatment of light.

A cursory look at The River Road validates the artist’s title of this work. This painting is a view of a short stretch of a dirt road alongside an expansive portion of the Hudson River. The overall style of this painting is typical of the late Hudson River School with the use of lighting in the Luminist style.