Two Views of the Sunset from Olana, Hudson, New York

About this work

Landscape sketch showing two stacked views of the summer sunset from the artist's estate near Hudson, New York, known as Olana. At center left, a reddish-purple range--the Catskill Escarpment and specifically Blackhead Mountain--looms over hills and rolling terrain in the middle distance, articulated in shades of green and gray. Above, a low-lying bank of clouds blocks the light of the setting sun, which casts the sky in a tint of orange and brightly illuminates the lower edges of clouds with a golden lining. The clouds themselves are grayish blue. Below, along the lower margin, the same scene at a later time is visible. The same mountain range with Blackhead Mountain is visible along the lower margin, now green instead of red. The clouds have passed and the now deep red sun hovers over the rolling ridge within a gray, gradient sky.