.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Few American artists captured the spirit and raw beauty of the American West with the skill and precision of Henry Farny. An exceptional example of Farny’s rare work in oil, The Day is Done is representative of the artist at the height of his abilities. The painting not only reveals his celebrated dedication to depicting Native American life in a decidedly compassionate manner, but also exemplifies Farny’s remarkable talents as an artist, especially in its masterful handling of light, atmosphere and space to achieve a harmonious composition.
French by birth, Farny immigrated to Pennsylvania with his parents and thereafter settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. Following the path of earlier Cincinnati artists, Farny traveled to Europe to study in Germany, where he acquired technical skills and made the acquaintance of Albert Bierstadt. With encouragement from Bierstadt, Farny first traveled to the American West in 1881, spending time at Fort Yates along the Missouri River near present day North Dakota. He returned West again in 1883 and 1884 and continued to regularly visit until his last trip in 1894. During these visits, Farny often became an active participant in the social life of the Indians he encountered. He gathered visual references in the form of sketches and photographs, as well as artifacts and other physical materials, which he would then utilize back in his Cincinnati studio to recreate the scenes and events he witnessed on the plains and in the mountains.
Aided by his firsthand experiences, Farny depicted the Indians of the American West with a uniquely intimate understanding. His sympathetic, faithful portrayal of their culture would eventually become the cornerstone of his art and establish his fame in the eyes of the turn-of-the-century public. Indeed, as featured in Farny’s paintings, the Native inhabitants of the West came to represent the ideals of dignity and nobility, a close connection to nature, and a simple and direct manner.
In the present work, Farny welcomes the empathetic viewer directly into a hunting party’s fire-lit circle. Unlike many of his contemporaries who employed exaggerated styles to depict action-packed dramas with violent Indians, Farny instead approaches the scene with a focus on a quieter, perhaps spiritual moment in Native American culture, when the group is reminiscing on the day’s events and appreciating their success, or maybe telling stories of old. Based on his firsthand experience and intimate knowledge of the Indian people, Farny’s narrative is rendered with an uncommon subtlety and harmony imbued with great resonance and insight.
As epitomized by The Day is Done, the success of Farny’s subtler approach to his subject is heighted by his ability to employ light to great effect in his compositions. Between 1893 and 1912, Farny particularly embraced the power of light to create an atmosphere. As Denny Carter notes, "His predilection for sunsets and hazy twilight scenes heightened the serenity created by his balanced compositions producing a tranquil, peaceful mood.” (Henry Farny, New York, 1978, p. 34) In The Day is Done, Farny emphasizes the meditative quality of the scene, and elucidates the ethereal beauty of the untouched landscape, through his use of soft shades of blue in combination with deep, reddish earth tones. Together, these hues capture the feeling of the cold, sun-kissed landscape during the final moments of the day, while the brighter glow of the campfire draws the viewer into the warmth of the figural focal point of the scene. The entire composition is brilliantly developed with contrasting diagonal bands of warm and cool tones, which effectively lead the viewer back and through the mountains to create a sense of the overall expansiveness of the landscape. The diagonal pattern joins with a characteristically strong vertical format and high horizon line, which Farny developed from an appreciation of Japanese art, to achieve both balance and strength.
In his most successful pictures, such as The Day is Done, Farny's commitment to exacting detail and precise modeling combine with his firsthand knowledge and intimate portrayal of his subjects to achieve an intense clarity of vision and strength of emotion. The unmatched honesty of his representation of Native Americans resulted in great popularity and acclaim for Farny during his lifetime, and his continued celebration to this day. Theodore Roosevelt, a friend of Farny’s, once remarked to the artist, “…the Nation owes you a great debt. You are preserving for future generations phases of American history that rapidly are passing away.” (as quoted in C. Baltzer, Henry F. Farny, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1975, p. 1)
French by birth, Farny immigrated to Pennsylvania with his parents and thereafter settled in Cincinnati, Ohio. Following the path of earlier Cincinnati artists, Farny traveled to Europe to study in Germany, where he acquired technical skills and made the acquaintance of Albert Bierstadt. With encouragement from Bierstadt, Farny first traveled to the American West in 1881, spending time at Fort Yates along the Missouri River near present day North Dakota. He returned West again in 1883 and 1884 and continued to regularly visit until his last trip in 1894. During these visits, Farny often became an active participant in the social life of the Indians he encountered. He gathered visual references in the form of sketches and photographs, as well as artifacts and other physical materials, which he would then utilize back in his Cincinnati studio to recreate the scenes and events he witnessed on the plains and in the mountains.
Aided by his firsthand experiences, Farny depicted the Indians of the American West with a uniquely intimate understanding. His sympathetic, faithful portrayal of their culture would eventually become the cornerstone of his art and establish his fame in the eyes of the turn-of-the-century public. Indeed, as featured in Farny’s paintings, the Native inhabitants of the West came to represent the ideals of dignity and nobility, a close connection to nature, and a simple and direct manner.
In the present work, Farny welcomes the empathetic viewer directly into a hunting party’s fire-lit circle. Unlike many of his contemporaries who employed exaggerated styles to depict action-packed dramas with violent Indians, Farny instead approaches the scene with a focus on a quieter, perhaps spiritual moment in Native American culture, when the group is reminiscing on the day’s events and appreciating their success, or maybe telling stories of old. Based on his firsthand experience and intimate knowledge of the Indian people, Farny’s narrative is rendered with an uncommon subtlety and harmony imbued with great resonance and insight.
As epitomized by The Day is Done, the success of Farny’s subtler approach to his subject is heighted by his ability to employ light to great effect in his compositions. Between 1893 and 1912, Farny particularly embraced the power of light to create an atmosphere. As Denny Carter notes, "His predilection for sunsets and hazy twilight scenes heightened the serenity created by his balanced compositions producing a tranquil, peaceful mood.” (Henry Farny, New York, 1978, p. 34) In The Day is Done, Farny emphasizes the meditative quality of the scene, and elucidates the ethereal beauty of the untouched landscape, through his use of soft shades of blue in combination with deep, reddish earth tones. Together, these hues capture the feeling of the cold, sun-kissed landscape during the final moments of the day, while the brighter glow of the campfire draws the viewer into the warmth of the figural focal point of the scene. The entire composition is brilliantly developed with contrasting diagonal bands of warm and cool tones, which effectively lead the viewer back and through the mountains to create a sense of the overall expansiveness of the landscape. The diagonal pattern joins with a characteristically strong vertical format and high horizon line, which Farny developed from an appreciation of Japanese art, to achieve both balance and strength.
In his most successful pictures, such as The Day is Done, Farny's commitment to exacting detail and precise modeling combine with his firsthand knowledge and intimate portrayal of his subjects to achieve an intense clarity of vision and strength of emotion. The unmatched honesty of his representation of Native Americans resulted in great popularity and acclaim for Farny during his lifetime, and his continued celebration to this day. Theodore Roosevelt, a friend of Farny’s, once remarked to the artist, “…the Nation owes you a great debt. You are preserving for future generations phases of American history that rapidly are passing away.” (as quoted in C. Baltzer, Henry F. Farny, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1975, p. 1)