THOMAS COLE

Painting the Nature of America

America 250 at the Thomas Cole National Historic Site

The Thomas Cole National Historic Site will present the 2026 initiative “Thomas Cole: Painting the Nature of America,” in celebration of America 250. In the early 19th-century, Thomas Cole (1801-1848) transformed the landscape of the United States into an iconic symbol of the country, giving rise to its national identity of America the beautiful. Cole emblazoned his canvases with vast forests, towering mountains, and sublime skies, and in doing so formulated a unifying emblem for the young country. He instilled the nation with pride and a desire to protect its natural scenery. Cole’s work launched a new movement in American art, now internationally celebrated as the Hudson River School of landscape painting. As we mark the nation’s 250th anniversary, Cole’s vision of this place in all its natural beauty continues to inspire and engage generations today.

Translating onto canvas the scenery he observed, Cole’s exquisite paintings of nature with their majestic views and awe-inspiring beauty served as a unifying force for a youthful nation struggling to establish a sense of identity. What signs and symbols would define us? Overarchingly, it was, and still is, the landscape.

—Nancy Siegel, Project Advisor and Professor of Art History, Towson University

Over the course of his career, Thomas Cole tackled a broad array of subjects: sublime mountain scenery and pastoral landscape, Greek myth and ancient ruins, cyclical history and religious allegory—the list goes on. His paintings spoke powerfully to his Jacksonian contemporaries, but they are hardly period pieces. More than 175 years after his death, his work—especially the work focused on American nature–continues to intrigue and inspire Americans living today.

—Alan Wallach, Project Advisor and Ralph H. Wark Professor of Art and Art History Emeritus and Professor of American Studies Emeritus, William & Mary

—SPECIAL EXHIBITION—

Thomas Cole: An American Visionary

May–Dec, 2026

A dynamic installation of Thomas Cole’s landscape paintings, painting objects, and easels. Includes an exploration of the artistic exchange between Cole and his student Frederic Church, in honor of Church 200.

In the new Richard Sharp Gallery in the Main House.

Thomas Cole, Catskill Mountain Landscape, n.d., oil on canvas, 12½ × 15½ in., Thomas Cole National Historic Site, Gift of Richard Sharp

—SPECIAL EXHIBITION—

Circles of Influence: Thomas Cole and the American Landscape Movement

Jun–Dec, 2026

A selection of works highlighting Cole’s influence, including Frederic Church, Asher B. Durand, Jasper Francis Cropsey, Albert Bierstadt, Susie Barstow, Mary Josephine Walters, and more.

In the historic Library Gallery designed by Thomas Cole in the Main House.

Jasper Francis Cropsey, Home in the Catskills, 1848, oil on canvas, 16 x 25 in., Hawthorne Fine Art

—SPECIAL EXHIBITION—

Contemporary Vistas

Cynthia Daignault: Light Atlas

Jun–Nov, 2026

Featuring an immersive work by Daignault inspired by Thomas Cole of 360 landscape paintings created on a road trip across the country.

In the reconstructed 1846 New Studio Building.

Cynthia Daignault, Light Atlas, 2016, oil on linen, 360 canvases, each 8 x 10 in. Art Bridges Collection. Photography Edward C. Robinson III.

—PROGRAMMING—

Jan–Dec, 2026

The Cole Site will present the Sunday Salon speaker series, featuring renowned curators and artists including Kevin Avery, Graham Boettcher, Teresa Carbone, Cynthia Daignault, Elizabeth Kornhauser, Nancy Siegel, and Alan Wallach; the Second Saturday creative artmaking series with local makers; a Curator Tour series; a Close-Looking series, K-12 School Programs culminating in a student exhibition; a Youth Program series, a Professional Development Program for Teachers, and more.

Thomas Cole: Painting the Nature of America at the Thomas Cole National Historic Site is supported in part by The National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.

This exhibition is made possible in part by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature, National Trust Insurance, LLC, Art Bridges, Anne and Fred Osborn III / The EASTER Foundation, Columbia Memorial Health, and Eli Wilner & Company to date.

This exhibition is also made possible in part with public funds from the Greene County Legislature through the Greene County Cultural Fund, administered in Greene County by CREATE Council on the Arts.

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Thomas Cole National Historic Site is still seeking sponsors to implement the initiative.

Contact: jgreim@thomascole.org

Thomas Cole & America 250 Across the Country

The U.S. State Department highlights Thomas Cole’s work in portraying America’s vast beautiful landscapes in a new national initiative, America in Brushstrokes.

Thomas Cole, Sunrise in the Catskills, 1826, National Gallery of Art