By 1860, most Americans could sense that a conflict was on the horizon.  For those in the southern states, the agitation to end slavery was seen as a threat to the southern way of life.  For abolitionists in the north, the existence of slavery was intolerable.  The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 exasperated the tension causing South Carolina to secede from Union before Lincoln’s inauguration. 

As the conflict came into focus, American artists began to reflect on the approaching storm.  Previously, artists had employed landscape paintings to reflect the United States as new world – an American Eden.  As the Civil War erupted, artists produced works that conveyed their feelings on the battle to save the Union.      

The presentation “The Approaching Storm” is a 60 to 90 minutes display of American landscape art within the context of the Civil War.  The artwork represented is contemporary to the period of the Civil War.  Later paintings would show battlefield heroics, but the paintings in this presentation reflect the trepidation and uncertainty as the nation plunged into war. 

Walk-ins welcome, but pre-registration is available. If you would like to pre-register, please email info@thefells.org