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This particular painting is probably his earliest and shows the town from the east viewed from a natural elevation, “Snake Hill.” A number of the buildings, such as the Eagle Hotel, Union Hall, and Poestenkill Union Academy, still stand today.
Exhibition History“Rediscovered Painters of Upstate New York,” New York Historical Society, NY, February 1, 1959 – February 28, 1959; Syracuse Museum of Fine Arts, Syracuse, NY, January 4, 1959 – January 25, 1959; Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, Utica, NY, November 30, 1958 – December 21, 1958; Albany Institute of History and Art, Albany, NY, October 30, 1958 – November 20, 1958; Rochester Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY, September 26, 1958 – October 21, 1958; New York State Historical Association, Cooperstown, NY, June 14, 1958 – September 15, 1958.
“Folk Art from the Collection of the New York State Historical Association,” Museum of American Folk Art, NY, January 11, 2000 – February 18, 2000.
“American Folk Art: Collection from the Fenimore Art Museum,” Mona Bismarck Foundation, Paris, France, January 25, 2001 – March 24, 2001.
“American Treasures from the Fenimore Art Museum,” The Society of the Four Arts, Palm Beach, FL, February 11, 2004 – April 16, 2004.
“Grandma Moses and the ‘Primitive Tradition,’” Bennington Museum, Bennington, VT, June 11, 2011 – October 30, 2011.
Joseph Hidley: The Art of Town and Country, Albany Institute of History and Art September 7, 2019-December 13, 2019.
Artist
Joseph Henry Hidley
Poestenkill, N.Y.
Date1862
MediumOil on wood panel
DimensionsFramed: 25 1/2 × 37 1/2 × 2 in. (64.8 × 95.3 × 5.1 cm)
Object numberN0382.1955
Credit LineCollection of the Fenimore Art Museum. Gift of Stephen C. Clark
Photograph by Richard Walker
Label TextBird’s-eye views of burgeoning American cities and towns became a popular promotional tool for town development and an expression of local pride during the mid-19th century. Most were sold in lithographic form to a mass market. Hidley, a house painter, carpenter, taxidermist, and handyman, painted five views of Poestenkill during the 19 years that he lived there from 1853 to 1872. One of these views was made into a lithograph for wider sale.This particular painting is probably his earliest and shows the town from the east viewed from a natural elevation, “Snake Hill.” A number of the buildings, such as the Eagle Hotel, Union Hall, and Poestenkill Union Academy, still stand today.
Exhibition History“Rediscovered Painters of Upstate New York,” New York Historical Society, NY, February 1, 1959 – February 28, 1959; Syracuse Museum of Fine Arts, Syracuse, NY, January 4, 1959 – January 25, 1959; Munson-Williams-Proctor Arts Institute, Utica, NY, November 30, 1958 – December 21, 1958; Albany Institute of History and Art, Albany, NY, October 30, 1958 – November 20, 1958; Rochester Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY, September 26, 1958 – October 21, 1958; New York State Historical Association, Cooperstown, NY, June 14, 1958 – September 15, 1958.
“Folk Art from the Collection of the New York State Historical Association,” Museum of American Folk Art, NY, January 11, 2000 – February 18, 2000.
“American Folk Art: Collection from the Fenimore Art Museum,” Mona Bismarck Foundation, Paris, France, January 25, 2001 – March 24, 2001.
“American Treasures from the Fenimore Art Museum,” The Society of the Four Arts, Palm Beach, FL, February 11, 2004 – April 16, 2004.
“Grandma Moses and the ‘Primitive Tradition,’” Bennington Museum, Bennington, VT, June 11, 2011 – October 30, 2011.
Joseph Hidley: The Art of Town and Country, Albany Institute of History and Art September 7, 2019-December 13, 2019.
On View
On view
c. 1850-1900
c. 1872
