AFA Winter 2019

Antiques & Fine Art 97 2019 W. Douglas McCombs is chief curator at the Albany Institute of History & Art, Albany, New York, and is the curator of A Brilliant Bit of Color . Of all his prolific output—more than one thousand recorded works—Palmer’s snow scenes are his best known and admired, and Palmer himself has often been labeled the “painter of the American winter.” Most of his winter landscapes are uninhabited, but occasionally some reveal traces of human presence, as in this painting. Here, the deeply grooved tracks from sleighs lead the viewer up the carriage drive of the Hudson River home of Palmer’s friend and teacher, Frederic Church. Fir trees or hemlocks line the drive forming dense shadows illuminated occasionally with dappled sunlight. Palmer’s blue, violet, and green shadows attracted much attention during his lifetime. The Albany Institute of History & Art holds the largest public collection of Palmer’s works, as well as documentary archival materials given to the Institute by his daughter Beatrice. A Brilliant Bit of Color: The Work of Walter Launt Palmer, at the Institute through December 31, 2019, presents a broad overview of the artist’s life and work through paintings, watercolors, pastels, ceramics, and selections from the extensive Palmer manuscript collection. For information, call 518.463.4478 or visit www.albanyinstitute.org.  Walter Launt Palmer (1854–1932), Road to Olana, 1888. Water and gouache on paper, 13¼ x 17¼ inches. Albany Institute of History & Art; Gift of the estate of Miss Evelyn Newman (1964.31.40).