Asher Brown Durand was associated with the Hudson River School painters. Like other artists of this group, Durand devoted his creative pursuits to the direct study of nature, producing numerous drawings and paintings that captured the beauty of the natural environment in the Northeastern United States. A View of the Valley depicts an idyllic scene with warm light, lush vegetation and a grand vista of the distant rolling hills. With great attention paid to the details of trees and rocks in the foreground, this work exemplifies Durand?s noted ability to render precise representations of his surroundings.