The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 28, 2024

East Humboldt Mountains, Utah

East Humboldt Mountains, Utah

1868
(American, 1840–1882)
Image: 19.7 x 27 cm (7 3/4 x 10 5/8 in.); Matted: 40.6 x 50.8 cm (16 x 20 in.)
Location: not on view

Description

By nature and by experience gained during the Civil War, O’Sullivan was ideally suited for the physical and creative demands required of the official photographer for the geological exploration of the fortieth parallel, led by the enterprising Yale geologist Clarence King. The goal of the expedition was to survey the geological structure and natural resources of a swath of territory 100 miles wide, from the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains across the Great Basin to the Rocky Mountains. While on the expedition in 1867–69 and 1872, O’Sullivan simultaneously pursued his own interest in perfecting a balanced, aesthetic style of landscape photography while providing a faithful record of the natural terrain. As typified in this print, he positioned the camera at a distance parallel to the majestic scenery, presenting a shallow, flattened depiction of space. The image describes in sharp detail the sheer beauty and rugged scale of this Western landscape.
  • Slater Memorial Museum, Norwich, CT
    Private Collection, CT
    (Etherton Gallery, Tucson, AZ)
    December 7, 1992
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Cleveland Museum of Art, Tom E Hinson. Catalogue of Photography. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1996. Reproduced: P. 263
  • Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 24-September 16, 2007); Frick Art and Historical Center, Pittsburgh, PA (October 3, 2009-January 3, 2010).
    The Cleveland Museum of Art (6/24/07 - 9/16/07) and Frick Art and Historical Center, Pittburgh, PA (10/3/2009 - 1/3/2010); "Icons of American Photography: A Century of Photographs from the Cleveland Museum of Art", no exhibition catalogue.
    Pioneers of Landscape Photography from the Museum's Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 12, 2000-January 3, 2001).
    Cleveland, Ohio: The Cleveland Museum of Art; August 12, 2000 - January 3, 2001. "Pioneers of Landscape Photography from the Museum's Collection."
    CMA, January 14 - March 27, 1994: "Land of Sky and Water: 19th Century Photographs of the American West," no exhibition catalogue.
    Selected Acquisitions. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 9-April 11, 1993).
    CMA, January 28 - March 15, 1992: "Selected Acquisitions," CMA Bulletin, 80 (February 1993), p. 69, no. 123.
  • {{cite web|title=East Humboldt Mountains, Utah|url=false|author=Timothy H. O'Sullivan|year=1868|access-date=28 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1992.238