Artwork
A Foggy Sky
A Foggy Sky is an oil painting by the Hudson River School artist John Frederick Kensett. It dates from 1872 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
A Foggy Sky is executed in oil paint on canvas, a standard support for Kensett's landscape production.
A Foggy Sky is executed in oil paint on canvas, a standard support for Kensett's landscape production. The canvas measures 77.5 by 116.2 centimeters, giving the work a horizontal orientation suited to its expansive atmospheric subject. Classified as a landscape painting within the Metropolitan Museum of Art's American Wing, the work belongs to the oil-on-canvas tradition typical of nineteenth-century American landscape practice.
History & Provenance
Created in 1872, A Foggy Sky is an oil on canvas landscape painted by John Frederick Kensett. The work measures 77.5 by 116.2 centimeters and is currently held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, classified within The American Wing. Specific earlier provenance, exhibition history, or accession number details are not documented in the available sources.
Context
A Foggy Sky (1872) is an oil on canvas landscape painting by John Frederick Kensett, described as a representative example of 19th‑century American landscape art. The work, measuring 77.5 × 116.2 cm, is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where its inclusion underscores its significance within the artist's mature output and the broader narrative of American landscape painting.
Overview
John Frederick Kensett's "A Foggy Sky," created in 1872, is an oil on canvas landscape painting. This work is a significant example within The American Wing's collection, showcasing the artist's mature style. It captures a specific atmospheric condition, emphasizing a quiet, contemplative approach to natural scenery rather than dramatic grandeur, characteristic of certain trends in American landscape art.
Subject & Meaning
The artwork presents a expansive, pale gray sky, heavy with fog that gently presses down upon a serene river. A delicate strip of land at the bottom provides a subtle anchor for the viewer's gaze. The scene conveys a profound sense of stillness and quietude, free from overt drama, evoking the hushed atmosphere often found in the moments just before daybreak.
Artist & collection
Artist
John Frederick Kensett was an American landscape painter and engraver born in Cheshire, Connecticut.
