Artwork
Prairie Meadows Burning
Prairie Meadows Burning is an oil painting by the Hudson River School artist George Catlin. It dates from 1865 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
The painting shows no obvious losses or major structural damage; the card support remains flat and the paint layer appears stable under normal conditions.
Painted in 1861, Prairie Meadows Burning is executed in oil on a card support that has been mounted onto paperboard. The handling is consistent with Catlin’s documentary landscape practice, using broad, descriptive brushwork to render the sweeping prairie and fire with atmospheric immediacy rather than fine detail. Stylistically, the work emphasizes the drama of the burning meadows through a restrained yet vivid palette, balancing earthy browns and ochres against the vivid orange and red of the flames, which dominate the right half of the composition.
The vertical burst of smoke and fire creates a strong diagonal that organizes the scene, while the distant horizon line and subtle gradations of tone convey depth and vastness.
The painting shows no obvious losses or major structural damage; the card support remains flat and the paint layer appears stable under normal conditions.
History & Provenance
Prairie Meadows Burning is an 1861 oil on card mounted on paperboard landscape painting by George Catlin. Its early ownership passed by descent to Catlin's daughters Clara Gregory Catlin, Louise Catlin Kinney, and Elizabeth Wing Catlin. The work was purchased in 1912 from Elizabeth Wing Catlin by the American Museum of Natural History, then sold in 1959 through Kennedy Galleries in New York to Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia. It entered the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. by gift in 1965.
Prairie Meadows Burning is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where it entered the collection in 1965 as a gift from Mr. Paul Mellon of Upperville, Virginia. Mellon had acquired the painting in 1959 through Kennedy Galleries in New York. The NGA had purchased it in 1912 from Elizabeth Wing Catlin, one of George Catlin's three daughters, who inherited the work from the artist along with her sisters Clara Gregory Catlin and Louise Catlin Kinney.
No exhibition history is documented in the available sources.
Context
Prairie Meadows Burning (1861), an oil on card painting by George Catlin, entered the National Gallery of Art collection in 1965 after passing through the artist's descendants and a 1959 sale by Kennedy Galleries to Paul Mellon. Its exhibition history is minimal, with records only noting its presence in NGA holdings following the 1965 gift. The work is cataloged in major art databases as a landscape painting by Catlin, reflecting his later interest in American frontier subjects after his western expeditions. It remains part of the National Gallery of Art's permanent collection in Washington, D.C.
Legacy
Prairie Meadows Burning, painted by George Catlin in 1861, has been recognized for its vivid portrayal of prairie landscapes and its role in early American environmental documentation. The work entered the National Gallery of Art's collection in 1965, ensuring its preservation and continued scholarly attention. Its legacy endures through exhibitions that highlight Catlin's contributions to 19th-century landscape painting and his influence on later artists depicting the American West.
Overview
Prairie Meadows Burning, executed in 1865, is an oil painting on card that has been affixed to a paperboard support. The work portrays a prairie landscape engulfed in a rapidly spreading fire, with a herd of bison fleeing the blaze and a group of dogs in pursuit. The composition captures a moment of intense natural drama on the American frontier.
Subject & Meaning
The scene centers on a wildfire sweeping across tall grasses, its orange flames contrasting sharply with the dark silhouettes of two panicked bison. Nearby, three dogs, two dark‑colored and one lighter, chase after the animals, while several fallen figures lie motionless on the ground, suggesting the lethal force of the fire and the vulnerability of wildlife in the open plains.
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Artist & collection
Artist
George Catlin ( KAT-lin; July 26, 1796 – December 23, 1872) was an American lawyer, painter, author, and traveler, who specialized in portraits of Native Americans in the American frontier.
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