Icicles!! Today’s been only the second time in my life that I’ve seen snow and ice!! 😍🙌🏼❄️ #Greatsmokymountainsnationalpark #FindYourPark #smokymountains #greatsmoky #tennessee #northcarolina #FindYourPark #GoParks #parks101 #ShareTheExperience #nationalpark #nationalparks #nationalparkgeek #RockThePark #usinterior #wnpa1938 #alltrails #experienceyouramerica #whyihearttheparks #americasbestidea #naturephotousa #npcollective #protectpubliclands #natparkexplorer #monumentsforall #optoutside (at Great Smoky Mountains National Park)
One of the best things about working for the National Archives is that we get exposure to a variety of Federal agencies and their work.
On August 25, 1916, the National Park Service was founded. But, of course, the establishment of an agency or park and the management of it are two very different things! Today we wanted to focus on the exceptional work done by our colleagues at the National Park Service and other Federal agencies that have made travel and enjoyment in the National Parks a reality over the past 101 years!
From our holdings of the National Park Service (Record Group 79), who built campgrounds, worked with concessionaires like the Fred Harvey Company and who made sure that there were “facilities” available to the every growing public; the U.S. Forest Service who preserved and managed lands before the birth of the Park Service (Record Group 95) and the Bureau of Public Roads (Record Group 30) who made it possible to leave the mule carts behind, we bring you the Grand Canyon National Park!
The history of the country is mirrored by a rich history of artistic expression, with many examples inspired by the places we know today as our national parks and cultural landscapes.
If you are interested in art history, the practices of painting or creating, or if you prefer getting to know a place through an artist's perspective, you might want to take a look at these four ways that art can be an invitation to national parks:
1. Cultural Landscape Centennial Poster Series
Step into eight park cultural landscapes through these artist perspectives of place.
Picture it:
William Henry Jackson recalls the recognizable figure of Chimney Rock rising over the hazy distance of the Nebraska plains. Jackson knew the route first-hand from his younger years working on a wagon train on the Oregon Trail in 1866.
Helmut Naumer, Sr. catches the warm glow of New Mexico as light dances along the walls of Frijoles Canyon in Bandelier National Monument. He was one of the artists commissioned to paint the landscape in the 1930s, as part of the Works Progress Administration’s art program.
Like Herbert Hoover, painter Grant Wood hailed from a small town in Iowa. His bold oil painting depicts the presidential birthplace as the commemorate landscape that it had become by the early 1930s.
You can learn more about each of these cultural landscapes and the artists behind the views at our website, where you can also view or download all eight posters.
2. Explore art collections that help tell America’s stories with Treasured Landscapes
This National Park Service art exhibit features works of art from over 50 NPS museum collections.
Landscape art was significant in the establishment of the National Park Service, inspiring decisions to protect and preserve these places for future generations. The collections also showcase art that was on display in private homes of public figures.
Portrait of the Old House in 1849, Godfrey N. Frankenstein, 1849 (Adams National Historical Park, ADAM 8451).
The subjects of these paintings illustrate the range of American experiences; from war, to architecture, to experiences in nature. A Treasured Landscapes book is also available to order.
3. Artist-in-Residence Program
Today, more than 50 artist-in-residence programs in parks across the country carry on the legacy of creating art in national parks. There are programs for visual artists, writers, photographers, musicians, and other creative media. Residencies are typically 2 to 4 weeks in length, and most include lodging.
Wondering what parks have artist-in-residence programs?
Each park has its own application process and timeline. The handy interactive map at this site includes links to program details on specific park websites.
Sky Grazing Summit, R. Scott Baltz, Artist-in-Residence at Acadia National Park (Source: NPS A.I.R. website).
4. Visit a park or landscape associated with an artist
“Really, I am not what I am best at. I believe I am a fisherman, dreamer and lover of nature…and if I lived to 120 I might become an artist.”
- Julian Alden Weir, 1913
Get to know a park or landscape associated with an artist:
Thomas Moran, guest artist on the 1871 Hayden U.S. Geological Survey team in Yellowstone area, created watercolors, woodblock prints, and sketches as visual documentation of the expedition’s findings. The depictions helped influence legislation from Congress that designated the Yellowstone region as a national park. Visitors can still admire the same spectacular scenery that Moran captured from overlooks like Artist Point, on the south rim of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone River in Yellowstone National Park.
At Desert View, in Grand Canyon National Park, the Watchtower and other buildings designed by Mary Colter are prime examples of Rustic architecture. In their exterior, they draw inspiration from indigenous prehistoric stone architecture. The significance of the buildings extends to their interior paintings. Hopi symbols painted on the concrete walls of the Hopi Room were created by distinguished Hopi artist Fred Kabotie in 1933. By incorporating regional, indigenous forms and imagery and using native materials at the Watchtower, Colter and Kabotie created a distinctive destination for canyon visitors.
Weir Farm National Historic Site preserves the home and studio of American Impressionist Julian Alden Weir (1852-1919), as well as the landscape that inspired his painting. The farm was a place for practice and collaboration for Weir and his contemporaries. Sustaining the local agricultural traditions of rural Branchville, Connecticut was as important to Weir as his art.
[ Revisit our 2016 feature on Weir Farm ]
This site plan from the Cultural Landscape Report Updated Treatment Plan documents the painting sites at the Weir Complex, Weir Farm National Historic Site in Connecticut.
This is just a tiny sampling of ways that art can be an invitation to a park. Artistic expressions of park cultural landscapes have captured the enduring value and unique beauty of these places, and they continue to inspire us.
