Evening Landscape

Joseph Frank Currier lived and worked in Germany during the late nineteenth century. Alongside other American artists such as William Merritt Chase, Frank Duveneck, and Walter Shirlaw, Currier participated in the artistic circles and influences of Munich, Polling, Schleissheim, and Dachau. Before returning to Boston in 1898 (at which time he set aside his artistic practice altogether), Currier developed a personal style characterized by bold, expressionistic brushwork and an emphasis on chiaroscuro (contrasts of light and dark). Around 1878, he began working extensively in watercolor and soon after created a series of pastels. “Evening Landscape,” featuring an interplay of dusky grays with touches of blue and pink, likely dates to this period.