Mount Corcoran
Painting on canvas • Albert Bierstadt (German-American, 1830–1902)
Style & Movement
Hudson River School / Luminism / Romanticism
Medium & Technique
Oil on canvas employing Luminist techniques, atmospheric glazing, and Chiaroscuro for dramatic lighting.
Creation Period
Circa 1876-1877
Dimensions & Format
Approximately 60 x 96 inches; Landscape format.
Subject Description
A monumental landscape featuring a high peak (Mt. Corcoran) emerging from storm clouds above a pristine mountain lake. The foreground includes detailed pine trees, a bear near the shoreline, and rocky debris, symbolizing the sublime power of the American West.
Condition & Value Assessment
Condition Assessment
Excellent; typical for a well-maintained museum-grade work.
Estimated Market Value
$5,000,000 - $10,000,000 USD
Auction Estimate
$4,000,000 - $8,000,000 USD
Provenance History
Acquired by the Corcoran Gallery of Art directly from the artist or early patrons; now part of the National Gallery of Art collection following the Corcoran dissolution.
Art Historical Significance
A major work of 19th-century American landscape painting, illustrating the Manifest Destiny ideology and the romanticization of the Western frontier.
Notable Features
Features a highly romanticized, fictitious peak named after the artist's patron William Wilson Corcoran; notable for its dramatic usage of light and vast scale.
Condition Issues
Minor varnish yellowing typical of age; possible stable craquelure in heavier impasto areas of the clouds.
Conservation Recommendations
Maintain stable humidity (45-55%) and temperature; UV-filtered lighting; periodic professional surface cleaning and varnish monitoring.