Falls of the Snake River

Painted in 1872, Falls of the Snake River was created by George Catlin and has remained in the National Gallery of Art's collection since its acquisition. The work entered the museum in 1965 as a gift from Paul Mellon, following its 1959 sale from Kennedy Galleries to him. Prior to this, it descended through Catlin's daughters and was purchased from Elizabeth Wing Catlin in 1912 by the American Museum of Natural History.

Falls of the Snake River is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where it entered the collection in 1965 as a gift from Paul Mellon. The work was acquired from Kennedy Galleries in 1959 by Paul Mellon and subsequently donated to the museum.

George Catlin painted Falls of the Snake River in 1872, a landscape that captures the dramatic cascade of the Snake River through a rugged gorge. The work demonstrates Catlin's enduring fascination with untouched American wilderness, a theme central to his broader oeuvre of frontier subjects. After leaving the National Academy of Design, Catlin devoted his later career to documenting indigenous cultures and natural scenery across North America.

The painting entered the National Gallery of Art's collection in 1965 through the bequest of Paul Mellon, ensuring its preservation within a major American institution. Its depiction of a specific geographical feature reflects 19th-century artistic efforts to document and interpret the continent's geography. Catlin's shift from portraiture to landscape painting during this period marked a significant evolution in his artistic focus, aligning with broader 19th-century American movements that celebrated the sublime in nature.

Created in 1862, Falls of the Snake River is a modestly sized oil painting executed on card that has been affixed to a paperboard backing. The composition presents a tranquil waterfall set within a wooded gorge, with surrounding rocks and foliage framing the cascade. The work exemplifies the artist’s interest in the natural scenery of the western United States.