View Across A Lake or River to Mountains (from Sketchbook) 1857 - 1867

This graphite drawing on paper, titled *View Across A Lake or River to Mountains (from Sketchbook)*, was made by Thomas Hewes Hinckley. Landscape sketches such as this one reflect the artistic practices of the mid-19th century. During this time, the Hudson River School was popularizing a romantic vision of the American landscape. Hinckley’s drawing offers a glimpse into the artistic process behind such monumental landscape paintings, showing how artists synthesized direct observation with their aesthetic ideals. Think about the cultural associations of the time and the idea of America as a vast, unspoiled wilderness. This imagery, while seemingly benign, often served to reinforce a particular narrative of westward expansion and national identity, downplaying the displacement and erasure of indigenous populations. Understanding the social and historical context of an artwork encourages us to examine the values and ideologies that shaped its creation and reception. By exploring archival sources, such as letters, diaries, and period publications, we can gain a deeper appreciation of art's complex relationship to society.