John William Casilear
John William Casilear was an American artist who lived from 1811 to 1893. He was part of what is known as the second generation of the Hudson River School of Art and its associated school, Luminism.
Casilear was born in 1811 in New York City in the United States. He began studying engraving when he was sixteen years old, first under Peter Maverick. After Maverick’s death four years later, Casilear continued his apprenticeship under Asher B. Durand with whom he became very close friends. In 1832, Casilear and his brother, both accomplished engravers, started their own banknote-engraving firm in New York City. Their firm became part of the American Bank Note Company and the largest engraving company in the United States.
Durand, Casilear’s mentor and friend, was a landscape artist. He had become interested in landscape painting from the influence of the artist Thomas Cole. He passed this interest on to Casilear. At 20 years old, Casilear painted his very first landscape. Durand saw the painting and appreciated Casilear’s talent. Under Durand’s influence, Casilear soon started painting landscapes. Between 1840 and 1842, Casilear joined Durand and several other artists, including Hudson River School artist, John Frederick Kensett, and traveled to Europe to feed their newfound love of painting. In Europe, they visited museums and studied the old masters. Casilear was greatly influenced by the landscapes of Claude Lorrain. Casilear’s treatment of clouds in his skies are a direct influence of Lorrain.
After returning back home to the states, Casilear turned his attention to the landscapes of New England. He remained a permanent resident of New York City but spent his summers traveling and painting with his artist friends. Some recurring subjects include the White Mountains of New Hampshire, the Genesee River valley of New York and Pennsylvania, and the Adirondacks and Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York State. Lake George in the southern Adirondacks was a favorite subject for him.
In 1852, Casilear became a full member of the esteemed National Academy of Design in New York City where he often exhibited his paintings. By 1857, Casilear was able to completely quit his engraving job to devote his time solely to his landscapes. In 1857, after quitting his job, Casilear went abroad to Europe again. This time, he spent most of his days sketching and painting the Alpine scenery in Switzerland. He returned home with enough subject material to keep him busy for the next several years.
Casilear’s work is remembered for his light-infused landscapes, referred to as Luminism. Additionally, the scenes he depicted were natural and realistic, rather than the large scope, and often aesthetic compilation landscape scenes that generally characterized the first generation of the Hudson River School of Art. His landscapes show the effect of human occupation, as opposed to the wild, untouched landscapes of the first generation of Hudson River School artists. Casilear’s landscapes often feature cattle from nearby farms, and small boats traversing the grand waterways.
John William Casilear died in 1893 at his home in Saratoga, New York, at 82 years old.
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