National Gallery of Canada

The National Gallery, London: Western European painting 1250–1900 Detroit Institute of Arts Museum Welcome to the National Museum of African Art / Smithsonian Institution The Barbados National Art Gallery American Painting Much art of the American colonial period consisted of portraits, as settlers sought to establish their identities in a new world. After the new nation achieved its independence, landscapes and scenes of native flora, fauna, and folk customs began to express its unique qualities and illustrate its untapped resources. Portraiture formed the mainstay of subject matter in colonial and federal American art, as immigrants to the New World attempted to bring a semblance of Old World civilization to their wild or, at best, provincial surroundings. John Singleton Copley followed West's example in depicting past and present occurrences with believable accessories and settings. When the Revolutionary War ended in 1783, artists sought to create a distinctive environment for the ideals of liberty. When the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 instantly doubled the nation's area, artists such as John James Audubon and George Catlin began to investigate the native people, flora, and fauna. John Singleton Copley