James McDougal Hart | |
|---|---|
 James M. Hart (ca. 1865-1867). Photo byRockwood. | |
| Born | (1828-05-10)May 10, 1828 Kilmarnock, Ayrshire,Scotland |
| Died | October 24, 1901(1901-10-24) (aged 73) |
| Education | Hudson River School |
| Known for | Landscape art,Painting |
James McDougal Hart (May 10, 1828 – October 24, 1901), was an Americanlandscape and cattlepainter of theHudson River School.
Hart was born inKilmarnock,Scotland, and was taken to America with his family in early youth. His older brother,William Hart, was also a Hudson River School artist, as were his younger sisterJulie Hart Beers and his two daughters, both figure painters,Letitia Bonnet Hart (1867 - Sept. 1953) andMary Theresa Hart (1872–1942). Another niece,Annie L. Y. Orff, became an editor and publisher.[1]
InAlbany, New York he trained with a sign and carriage maker— possibly the same employer that had taken on his brother in his early career. James later returned toEurope for serious artistic training, studying inMunich and as a pupil ofFriedrich Wilhelm Schirmer at theKunstakademie Düsseldorf. He is associated with theDüsseldorf school of painting.
Hart returned to America in 1853. He exhibited his first work at theNational Academy of Design in 1848 and became an associate in 1857 and a full member in 1859. He was particularly devoted to the National Academy, exhibiting there over a period of more than forty years and serving as vice president late in his life from 1895 to 1899. Like his brother William, James also exhibited at the Brooklyn Art Association (he lived for a time in Brooklyn) and at major exhibitions around the country.
Along with most of the majorlandscape artists of the time, Hart based his operations in New York City and adopted the style of theHudson River School. While he and his brother William often painted similarlandscape subjects, James may have been more inclined to paint exceptionally large works. An example isThe Old Homestead (1862), 42 x 68 inches, in the collection of theHigh Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia. James may have been exposed to large paintings while studying in Düsseldorf, a center of realist art pedagogy that also shaped the practices ofAlbert Bierstadt andWorthington Whittredge.
Like his brother William, James excelled at painting cattle. Kevin J. Avery writes, "the bovine subjects that once distinguished [his works] now seem the embodiment of Hart's artistic complacency." (p. 250 inAmerican Drawings and Watercolors in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Volume I: A Catalogue of Works by Artists Born Before 1835) In contrast with the complacency of some of his cattle scenes, his majorlandscape paintings are considered important works of the Hudson River School. A particularly fine example isSummer in the Catskills, now in theThyssen-Bornemisza Museum in Madrid, Spain.
Among Hart's students was the Hudson River School painterEvelina Mount.[2][3]
Hart is interred atGreen-Wood Cemetery inBrooklyn,New York.
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