Composing Olana

Nyhet

A Journey on Foot Through Frederic Church’s Greatest Work of Art

Häftad, Engelska, 2026

379 kr

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The first and only book devoted to the landscape Frederic Church designed at Olana—what he considered his greatest work of art—timed to coincide with the bicentennial of his birthModelled on her acclaimed On the High Line (now in its third edition from Fordham University Press), Composing Olana unfolds as a series of walks along the seven carriage roads Frederic Edwin Church built here in 1860s–1880s. Along the way, LaFarge unpacks the history of everything we see, and much that we don’t, in the greater landscape, from the Ice Age geology that created it to the artists and conservationists who preserved it. We learn about lesser-known women painters of the Hudson River School; the Native Peoples who lived here before the Europeans arrived; and the mentorship of Church’s only teacher, Thomas Cole.Archival letters, diaries, and historic accounts reveal Church’s vital role in preserving Niagara Falls; his contributions to Central Park and the Metropolitan Museum of Art; and his engagement with music, photography, and global exploration throughout the second half of the nineteenth century.Published to coincide with the 200th anniversary of his birth, Composing Olana enables readers to finally comprehend Church’s vital, and still not properly recognized, place in the American story. Illustrated with dozens of historic and contemporary photographs, it is both a guidebook and a meditation on American art, landscape, and preservation.An innovative companion website, OlanaBook.com, provides hundreds of photos, audio clips from the soundscape, and an interactive version of the specially created "Rambler’s Map." Designed as an accessible and lively companion for armchair readers and park visitors, Composing Olana shows why this landscape, still intact today, matters so profoundly in the history of American art and public parks.

Produktinformation

Utgivningsdatum2026-03-31
Mått152 x 229 x 18 mm
Vikt386 g
FormatHäftad
SpråkEngelska
Antal sidor208
FörlagFordham University Press
ISBN9781531513078

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Annik LaFarge is a writer, editor, photographer, and lecturer who has been writing about American parks and landscapes since 2008. Author of On the High Line (FUP, 2024), and Chasing Chopin, a New York Times Book Review "Editors’ Choice," her work has appeared numerous publications including the New York Times, Publishers Weekly, Huff Post, and the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry. She is a Trustee of the Waterfront Museum in Brooklyn.

Author’s Note ixCompanion Website xiA Rambler’s Map of Olana xiiIntroduction 1Section 1: South Road, 1865 15David Huntington, the Man Who Saved Olana, 18 • The Indispensable Partnership, 22 • TheFrederic Church Center for Art and Landscape, 27 • Catskill Mountain House and the Roots ofLandscape Tourism, 30 • The Name "Olana", 34 • The "Land" in Landscape, 34Section 2: North Road, 1869 39"Donkey Fever", 40 • Downie Church, 42 • Andrew Jackson Downing, 43 • Foremothers, 45 •Columbia-Greene Community College, 48 • En Plein Air Painters, 49Section 3: Ridge Road, 1884 53Composing a View, 53 • Becraft Mountain, 54 • Mount Merino, 56 • The City of Hudson, 58 •Hudson Hall, 62 • Niagara Falls, 63 • The Erratics, 66Section 4: New Approach Road, 1887–1888 69A Real-World Panorama, 69 • Church’s Studios, 75 • The Bend in the River, 76 • The OlanaHouse, 80 • Fallen Hemlock, 86 • The Mingled Garden, 88Section 5: Lake Road, 1884–1885 91Olana Lake, 92 • The Business of Ice, 93 • Cosy Cottage, 94 • The Preservation of Olana, 96 •Farm Road, 98 • When the Future Came to the Olana Farm, 99 • Dogs of Olana, 100Section 6: Crown Hill Road, 1884–1885 103The Plan of Olana, 1886, 104 • Buckthorn Fence, 106 • Landscape Furniture, 108 • Wildlife, 110 •The Park, 110Section 7: Bethune Road, 1864–1865 115Dead Trees, 116 • Guerilla Art, 118 • The Olana Eye SkyCam, 119 • The Soundscape, 121Section 8: The Hudson River Skywalk and Art Trail, 2019 127The Rip Van Winkle Bridge, 129 • Thomas Cole Site, 130 • Emily Cole, 132 • The Hudson River, 134 •Rogers Island, 135 • Hudson River Boat Traffic, 137 • Icebergs, 139Acknowledgments 145Notes 149Bibliography 171Index 175

"Composing Olana is both a meditation and a companion – a way of seeing Frederic Church’s home and landscape with eyes newly opened. Drawing on years of historic research and traversing its winding paths and studying its panoramic views, LaFarge reveals how Church created his enduring masterpiece, which, to this reader, becomes as daring a design as its predecessor, Central Park." - Sara Cedar Miller, author of Before Central Park br>"A highly readable, informative guidebook to the landscape and views around Frederick Edwin Church’s unique hilltop house...it gives us the compelling and dramatic history not only of Church's original remaking of the landscape to conform to his vision, but also of more contemporary efforts to save the viewshed and keep that vision intact. All of this unfolds naturally and beautifully, in an engaging style." - Benjamin Swett, author of The Picture Not Taken, Route 22, and The Hudson Valley: A Cultural Guide "Here is another story about a quintessential American landscape, this one created by an artist in the heart of the Hudson Valley. As she did with On the High Line, LaFarge takes us on a rich, fascinating walking tour, uncovering countless stories, characters, relics of the industrial past, Ice Age geology, art, and insights into the cultural history and preservation of this beautiful, singular place." - Robert Hammond, co-founder, Friends of the High Line and co-author of High Line: The Inside Story of New York City’s Park in the Sky "In a fully realized labor of love, Hudson Valley–based writer LaFarge (On the High Line) builds this book around the seven main roads Church constructed at Olana, skillfully creating a well-organized narrative by weaving together tales about Church’s professional ascent, his notable contemporaries, his family, Olana’s history, the Hudson River School of painting Church helped create, the property’s development, and the epic battles to preserve the property after Church’s death."– VERDICT "A remarkable achievement and an inspiring story. This book will be a welcome addition to any collection that values art, environmentalism, community history, or any combination of the three." – Library Journal