Francis Augustus Silva

Francis Augustus Silva (October 4, 1835 – March 31, 1886)[1] was an American Luminist painter of the Hudson River School.[2] His specialty was marine scenes, particularly of the Atlantic coast,[3] a genre in which he masterfully captured the subtle gradations of light in the coastal atmosphere. He focused on romantic scenes, avoiding depictions of seaside recreation, even when painting scenes at Coney Island,[2] which was then already a popular recreational area.

Francis Augustus Silva
BornOctober 4, 1835
New York City, U.S.
DiedMarch 31, 1886 (aged 50)
New York City, U.S.
MovementAmerican Luminism
Evening (1881), New Britain Museum of American Art, New Britain (Connecticut)

Biography

Born in New York City, he started out as a sign painter in his home city, also painting landscape and historical scenes on the wooden paneling of stagecoaches.[4]:316 In 1861 he joined the New York State Militia's Seventh Infantry Regiment and fought in the Civil War, reaching the rank of captain. Due to a bout of illness, he was mistakenly dishonorably discharged for desertion, but this was reversed three years later, allowing him to re-enlist and serve as a military hospital steward.[4]:316

In 1867 he married Margaret Watts and opened a painting workshop in New York. During the following years he participated in several exhibitions of the National Academy of Design. In 1872 he joined the American Society of Watercolorists. In 1876 he traveled to Venice, his only known trip abroad.[5] He died of pneumonia in 1886. Although he did not achieve great fame during his lifetime, his paintings have since received greater recognition,[4]:316 with one of his paintings selling for over half a million dollars.[6]

He painted landscape paintings in the states of New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts. On occasion he would travel along the Hudson River to find material for his paintings.[5]

References
  1. New-York Historical Society. (1982). American landscape and genre paintings in the New-York Historical Society : a catalog of the collection, including historical, narrative, and marine art. Koke, Richard J. Boston. Mass.: Published by the New York Historical Society in association with G.K. Hall. p. 138. ISBN 0-8161-0364-X. OCLC 9943900.
  2. Weinberg, Helene Barbara; Bolger, Doreen; Curry, David Park (1994). American Impressionism and Realism: The Painting of Modern Life, 1885-1915. Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 104. ISBN 978-0-87099-700-6.
  3. Amon Carter Museum of Western Art. (2001). An American collection : works from the Amon Carter Museum. Junker, Patricia A., Gillham, Will. (1st ed.). New York: Hudson Hills Press in association with the Amon Carter Museum. p. 94. ISBN 1-55595-198-8. OCLC 46641783.
  4. N.Y.), Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York (1987). American Paradise: The World of the Hudson River School. Metropolitan Museum of Art. ISBN 978-0-87099-497-5.
  5. Explorar el Edén : paisaje Americano del siglo XIX. Llorens Serra, Tomás, 1936-, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. Madrid: Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza. 2000. ISBN 84-88474-71-7. OCLC 47359375.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  6. "Francis Augustus Silva (1835-1886), View on the Hudson". www.christies.com. Retrieved April 16, 2020.
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