At the Louvre since 1975, the Thomas Cole (1801-1848) painting The Cross in the Wilderness marks the culmination of his investigation into the representation of a certain type of American landscape, the Wilderness, the legendary archetype of grandiose, unspoiled nature. In this sense, he was following the example of the new American literature at the time, such as The Last of the Mohicans, published in 1826.
This painting also abounds with references to the art of the old continent, since Cole, who was born in England and had made several return trips to Europe, knew the different schools well. It is a milestone in his oeuvre, permeated with the art of Claude Lorrain and Turner in particular, in both the delicate analysis of light and its highly original scenography.
With this book, Guillaume Faroult endeavors to unravel the complex web of solutions that sustain the artwork under its seeming and luminous simplicity.
With the generous support of the Terra Foundation for American Art