Collection Spotlight: The Art of Skywatching
What do skywatchers, professional and amateur, notice when they look at the sky as depicted in works of art?
In this ongoing series of exhibitions, Marc Taylor, Manager of Planetarium and Science Programs at the Hudson River Museum, draws our attention to artworks from the permanent collection and sheds light on both the phenomena depicted and the science behind them.
Artists on view range from the nineteenth century to the present. Some artists render phenomena faithfully—for the sake of visual accuracy, scientific precision, or both—while others bend the rules of the visual world, or even logic, for aesthetic effect. By viewing these works of art through a scientific lens, we deepen our understanding and appreciation beyond the aesthetic dimension. Whether gazing upon the sky’s changing colors, the illuminating properties of moonlight, or the position of heavenly bodies relative to Earth, we invite you to contemplate the physical mechanisms behind these natural occurrences. Perhaps you will recognize the visual clues the next time they appear before you in art—or in real life!
The loan featured in this exhibition is courtesy Theodore Kaplan and Henry Tobin.
Exhibitions are made possible by assistance provided by the County of Westchester.
Featured Artists
Currently on view: Howard Russell Butler • Frank Russell Green • Richard Haas • James Hendricks • Louis Aston Knight • Jon Schueler • Jane Wilson
Previously on view: Derrick Adams • Katherine Bradford • Albert Bierstadt • Arthur Dove • Alvin C. Hollingsworth • Frances Hynes • Amy (Frisbie Blair) Jones • Elihu Vedder • Robert Zakanitch
Frank Russell Green (American, 1856–1940). The Coming of Night, ca. 1904–8. Oil on canvas. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Manney, 1972 (72.43.2).
Selected objects
Elihu Vedder (American, 1836–1923). Stella Funesta (The Evil Star), ca. 1892. Pastel and charcoal on paper. Gift of the American Academy of Arts and Letters, 1955 (55.24c).
Frank Russell Green (American, 1856–1940). The Coming of Night, ca. 1904–8. Oil on canvas. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Manney, 1972 (72.43.2).
Louis Aston Knight (American, b. France, 1873–1948). Sunset on the Hudson River, 1918. Oil on canvas. Gift of Mrs. Aston Knight, 1959 (59.2).
Howard Russell Butler (American, 1856–1934). The Moon and Venus at Sunset, ca. 1923. Oil on artist’s board. Gift of Mrs. George J. Stengel, by exchange, 2018 (2018.14).
Arthur Dove (American, 1880–1946). Sunset, 1935. Oil on canvas. Art Bridges.
Alvin C. Hollingsworth (American, 1928–2000). Sun and Moon Opus, from the Prophet series, ca. 1968–1973. Oil and acrylic on canvas. Collection of Jeanette LaRoche (L2021.2.1).
James Hendricks (American, 1938–2017). Moon Sites, 1969. Acrylic on canvas. Hudson River Museum. Gift of the Artist, 1972 (72.38).
Frances Hynes (American, b. 1945). Constellation Series #3 (House/Window with Northern Cross and Milky Way), 1986. Compressed charcoal and pastel on paper. Gift of the artist in memory of the Nolen-Hynes Family and Veronica, Wanda, and Angie Miller, 2019 (2019.08.1).
Jon Schueler (American, 1916–1992). Frozen Descent, 1987. Oil on canvas. Gift of the Jon Schueler Foundation, 2024 (2024.6).
Richard Haas (American, b. 1936). Model for Proposed Mural on Planetarium Dome, ca. 1990. Painted steel. Gift of the artist, 2020 (2020.2). © 2021 Richard Haas / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY.
Derrick Adams (American, b. 1970). Orbiting Us #18, 2018. Mixed media collage on paper. Gift of Henry S. Hacker, by exchange, 2018 (2018.07). © Derrick Adams.
Katherine Bradford (American, b. 1942). Swim Team Outerspace, 2020. Archival pigment print, edition 46/125. Gift of Mrs. Eleanor Lewis, by exchange, 2021 (2021.4).
