Herman Herzog (1832-1932) German/American

Eeling on Lake Laura,  Virginia

Inscribed on verso: Lake Laura

Lake Laura is located in southwestern Shenandoah County near West Virginia

Retains old label:

Barnes / Fine Arts / 1225 Connecticut Avenue / Washington, D. C.

And an old inventory number: A2382

Oil on canvas

14″ x 18″

Condition: Fine condition, lined.

Like many Hudson River School artists, Herman Herzog was born, studied and exhibited in Europe before immigrating to the United States. A native of the Hansa city Bremen, Herzog studied at Dusseldorf Academy in 1849. His landscape paintings featured the German and Swiss Alps as well as the rugged mountains of Norway and the Pyrenees. Seascapes also figured prominently in his work. His romantic paintings are characterized by drama and emotion, a style prevalent throughout Europe and American at the time. Between 1849 and 1869 Herzog’s paintings were acquired by many European collectors including Queen Victoria of England and Czar Alexander of Russia.

In 1869, Herzog moved to Philadelphia and quickly established himself as one of America’s leading artists. He spent a great deal of time traveling and painting in the American West. Yosemite, Los Angeles and the nearby Coronado Islands beckoned. He also ventured to Florida. Herzog exhibited at the fabled Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876 where he garnered a bronze medal for a pair of paintings of Norway and Yosemite. Many prominent American public institutions own works by Herzog including The Museum of Fine Art, Boston, numerous Philadelphia institutions and the Crocker Museum in California.