Loading
North Pearl Street from Steuben Street to Fox Street, 1812
James Eights (1798-1882)c. 1850
Albany Institute of History & Art
Albany, United States
Details
- Title: North Pearl Street from Steuben Street to Fox Street, 1812
- Creator Lifespan: 1798 - 1882
- Creator Gender: Male
- Date: c. 1850
- Location: United States
- Physical Dimensions: w17.50 x h10.25 in (Complete)
- Type: Drawings and Watercolors
- Rights: Bequest of Ledyard Cogswell, Jr.
- External Link: http://www.albanyinstitute.org/home.html
- Medium: Watercolor on paper
- Painter: James Eights (1798-1882)
- Additional Comments: James Eights's watercolors take viewers on a romantic journey through a city of Albany filled with quaint Dutch characters, customs, and buildings. Since the 1850s, they have been used by artists, publishers, and popular historians to reinforce a romantic view of Albany's past. The artist who made this painting was a product of the Enlightenment and believed the human condition could be improved by observing the natural world carefully and sharing that knowledge with others. These paintings were part of a larger effort by Eights to capture the substance of old Albany by recording and representing a colorful assortment of the language, costume, and traditions that had been part of the city's colonial culture. The image shown here was created from a combination of memory, research, and observation, and provides insights into the character of Albany as it expanded into a commercial transportation center. It shows a main thoroughfare, North Pearl Street, where a black woman and child stand in the foreground as reminders of the vital part African Americans played in Albany's economy and society.
Get the app
Explore museums and play with Art Transfer, Pocket Galleries, Art Selfie, and more
