Autumn Afternoon, the Wissahickon, Thomas Moran, oil on canvas, roughy 30 x 45″ ( 77 x 115 cm), in the collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art (click on image for an enlargement).

There is a larger image on Wikipedia, though the color is off. I’ve taken that image and color corrected it to match the one on the Terra Foundation website to get my larger detail crops.

The Terra Foundaion is a worldwide oganization, which loans out to various museums. According to their website, this painting is currently on display at the Ashmolean Museum of Art & Archaeology, Oxford, United Kingdom until September 30, 2026.

As a long time resident of the area in and around Philadelphia Pennsylvania, I’ve been to various points in the Wissahickon, the most dramatic terrain of which lies within the city limits.

I don’t remember seeing this particular view, so I don’t know if Moran has exaggerated here. Even in the 1860s, when this painting is dated, the valley was surrounded a populated area, though you’d never know it from the composition.

Moran captures the scene, and the essence of Autimn in the lush landscapes of southeastern Pennsylvania, with a combination of sensibilities, partly from his history as a Hudson River style painter, and partly from the increasing influence of the French Barbizon painters.

Happy Autumnal Equinox!

The Goldfish Bowl, Edward Perugini, oil on canvas. roughly 39 x 31 in. (100 x 79 cm).

Link is to the Bonham’s auction page from 2010. Click on the image on the Bonham’s page for a larger version.

Bonham’s at the time lists it as only “attributed to” Perugini, but all other references to it that I’ve found recently simply say Perugini, so either the attribution has been confirmed, or none of the other mentions are as concerned with correctness as the auction house.

Regardless, it is a striking painting, though damaged along the lower side of the woman’s face and at the botom of the canvas. Not so much, though, as to prevent us from enjoying the painting.

I love the compositoin, with the brighter areas of the woman’s face and the highlights on the sleeve just set off from center, and the bright highlight on the glass of the bowl providing a light counterbalance to the right.

The hair almost fades into the low chroma tapestry behind the model, the dark bands of fabric in her top, and the darkness of her skirt emphasize the bold highlights in the gold colored areas.

Look at how well controlled the muted effect on her shadowed arm seems completely natural in the generally low light of the scene. The orange-red of the goldfish isd balanced by her ruddy cheeks and modesltly red lips.

For more on Perugini, see my post from 2022.