Artwork Page for Great Dismal Swamp, Virginia

Details / Information for Great Dismal Swamp, Virginia

Great Dismal Swamp, Virginia

c. 1872–90

Israel Cook Russell

(American, 1852–1906)
Culture
America
Medium
albumen print
Measurements
Sheet: 15.1 x 19.8 cm (5 15/16 x 7 13/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Judith K. McMillan 2024.132
Public Domain
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.
Location
Not on view
Print
?

Did You Know?

From the 1700s through the Civil War, the Great Dismal Swamp’s timber was harvested by slave labor, yet the swamp also housed numerous people who had escaped slavery.

Description

Israel Cook Russell’s view of the Great Dismal Swamp, which straddles the border between Virginia and North Carolina, evokes both the locale’s abundance of timber and its sense of desolation. Russell, a celebrated geologist, took care to express the geological and biological forces that shaped landscapes but also to create images of artistic value.
A horizontally oriented sepia-toned albumen print with fine detail depicts a wooded swamp. In the lower left, a man in a brimmed hat sits on a log, facing right. Tangled, leafless branches clutter the foreground. Trees with flared, buttressed roots rise in the middle ground, including one on the right with exposed, pipe-like roots. A forest of slender trunks recedes into the background, filling the upper composition with a network of branches.

Great Dismal Swamp, Virginia

c. 1872–90

Israel Cook Russell

(American, 1852–1906)
America

See Also

Visually Similar by AI

Contact Us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please fill out the appropriate request form linked below:

Update or Correct Artwork Information

Imagery or Rights for Non-Open-Access Artworks

Report a Website Issue

Further Questions About This Artwork