Artwork
Moonlight on Mount Lafayette, New Hampshire
Moonlight on Mount Lafayette, New Hampshire is a gouache work on paper by the Hudson River School artist William Trost Richards. It dates from 1873 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
A dark mountain under a pale moon, black trees cutting sharp shapes against the sky. Richards worked on gray-green paper rather than white, letting the color show through the thin watercolor so the moonlight glows without heavy paint. He painted outdoors at night, rare in 1873, and the fine detail, down to each pine needle, is almost photographic.
Subject & Meaning
The composition captures the mountain under the illumination of moonlight, with the moon prominently featured in the sky alongside clouds.
William Trost Richards's 1873 watercolor depicts a nocturnal landscape centered on Mount Lafayette in New Hampshire. The composition captures the mountain under the illumination of moonlight, with the moon prominently featured in the sky alongside clouds. The illuminated sky contrasts with the darkened terrain below, which includes a river, trees, and the broader mountain range.
As a landscape work, the painting represents the natural scenery of the American Northeast, emphasizing the interplay of light and atmosphere over the topographical features of Mount Lafayette and its surrounding environment.
Technique & Style
Richards executed Moonlight on Mount Lafayette, New Hampshire (1873) in a mixed media combination of watercolor, gouache, and graphite on gray-green wove paper, a support choice that lends a cool, atmospheric tonality appropriate to the nocturnal subject. The horizontal composition, measuring approximately 21.6 by 36 centimeters, is treated as a tightly observed landscape in which the artist uses the tinted paper as a mid-value ground, allowing translucent washes to establish the moonlit sky, river, and distant mountain mass while opaque gouache and graphite accents articulate the silhouetted trees, clouds, and foreground detail. The handling is precise and draftsmanship-driven, characteristic of Richards's mature watercolor practice, balancing delicate tonal modulation with crisp linear definition to convey the silvery clarity of moonlight over the New Hampshire terrain.
History & Provenance
William Trost Richards created Moonlight on Mount Lafayette, New Hampshire in 1873, as documented by both internal records and Wikidata sources. The work was executed in watercolor, gouache, and graphite on gray-green wove paper, depicting the moonlit landscape of Mount Lafayette. There is no evidence in the provided sources of a commission for this piece; it appears to have been produced independently by the artist.
Since its creation, the work has been part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection, with no recorded changes in ownership or provenance.
Overview
Painted in 1873, Moonlight on Mount Lafayette, New Hampshire is a watercolor, gouache, and graphite work by William Trost Richards, a prominent figure in the American landscape tradition. The composition depicts the silhouette of Mount Lafayette against a pale, luminous sky, with dark, sharply defined trees in the foreground creating a stark contrast. Richards executed this piece on gray-green wove paper rather than the conventional white support.
This specific ground allows the paper's tone to function as a mid-tone, enabling the artist to achieve a glowing moonlight effect through thin, translucent washes without the need for heavy opaque application. The work exemplifies Richards' dedication to precise observation and his mastery of atmospheric effects, particularly in nocturnal scenes. Created during a period when the artist was deeply engaged with the detailed rendering of the American wilderness, the painting reflects the Hudson River School's reverence for nature while demonstrating Richards' unique technical approach to capturing the subtle interplay of light and shadow in a moonlit landscape.
Artist & collection
