The Falls of Tamahaka, Cherokee County, North Carolina

Artist William Charles Anthony Frerichs American, born Belgium, 1829–1905, active in the United States 1850–1905

Datecirca 1860–1870

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions30 x 48 in. (76.2 x 121.9 cm)
Frame: 38 x 55 3/4 in. (96.5 x 141.6 cm)

ClassificationsPaintings

Credit LineGift of Mr. and Mrs. George D. Finch

Object numberG.65.24.1

On View

Not on view

Label Text
Trained at The Hague in the honored tradition of Dutch landscape painting, Frerichs immigrated to New York at the age of twenty-one. In 1854, having recently married and perhaps desiring a more stable income, he accepted a teaching position at Greensboro Female College, North Carolina. He remained there for ten years, during which time he made repeated forays into western North Carolina and Virginia, painting the Appalachian wilderness with robust vitality. Based on sketches or memory, The Falls of Tamahaka reaches for the same raw, elemental grandeur other artists found in the Catskills or Adirondacks of New York. However, true to his training, Frerichs drew equal inspiration from Dutch artists of the seventeenth century. Compare this painting to Jacob van Ruisdael's Wooded Landscape with Waterfall, also in the Museum's collection.Provenance**Created United States; collection of the artist. [Sale, Masonic Hall, Bignon & Crump, Augusta, GA, November 30–December 1, 1871, no. 26] [1]; B. W. Heard, Washington, GA; Mrs. Linus M. Ellis Sr., Washington, GA, 1965; sold to Mr. and Mrs. George D. Finch, Thomasville, NC, 1965; given to NCMA, 1965.

[1] “125 Choice Oil Paintings,” as Falls of the French Broad River, N.C.
Published References"Accessions of American and Canadian Museums," Art Quarterly 28 (1965), listed 314.

The Governor's National Art Tour (exhibition catalogue) (Olympia: State Capitol Museum, 1966), unnumbered, illus. (b-w) 5.

"Acquisitions," North Carolina Museum of Art Bulletin 7, nos. 2 and 3 (1967/68?), noted 4, illus. (b-w) 47, fig. 11.

American Paintings to 1900: Catalogue of Paintings, Vol. 1, 2nd ed. (Raleigh: North Carolina Museum of Art, 1966), no. 22, illus. (b-w).

Nina Kasanof, "American Landscapes of the 19th Century in the North Carolina Museum of Art," North Carolina Museum of Art Bulletin 8 (June 1969), 2-15, discussed 6, illus. (b-w) fig. 6.

Hildegard J. Safford, "William C. A. Frerichs, Artist, 1829-1905," Staten Island Historian 31 (October-December 1970), 29-33, noted 30.

William C.A. Frerichs: 1829-1905 (exhibition catalogue) (Raleigh: North Carolina Museum of Art, 1974), unnumbered, illus. (color).

American Paintings from the Collection of the North Carolina Museum of Art (brochure) (Charlotte: Mint Museum of Art, 1975), no. 14.

200 Years of the Visual Arts in North Carolina (exhibition catalogue) (Raleigh: North Carolina Museum of Art, 1976), cat. no. 18, illus. (b-w).

Duane Raver, "Nature and Art, the Inseparable Companions," Wildlife in North Carolina 42 (April 1978), 10-15, illus. (color) 12-13.

Edgar Peters Bowron, ed., Introduction to the Collections (Chapel Hill: Published for the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, by The University of North Carolina Press, 1983), illus. (b-w) 286.

Melissa Clement, "Nature and her many faces on display in landscape show," (exhibition review), Fayetteville, NC: Fayetteville Observer-Times (December 4, 1998), mentioned 19.

Art Taylor, "Museum Loans," Preview: The Magazine of the North Carolina Museum of Art (March/April 2002), mentioned 7.
Exhibition HistoryOlympia, WA, State Capitol Museum, "The Governor's National Art Tour," 1966; Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, February 12-26, 1967 [then traveling?], unnumbered, illus. (b-w) 5.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "William C. A. Frerichs, 1829-1905," September 15-October 20, 1974, unnumbered, illus. (color).

Charlotte, NC, Mint Museum of Art, "American Paintings from the Collection of the North Carolina Museum of Art," September 7-October 19, 1975, no. 14.

Greensboro, NC, Greensboro Preservation Society, "Special Exhibition," March 16-18, 1976

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "200 Years of the Visual Arts in North Carolina," September 12-October 24, 1976, cat. no. 18, illus. (b-w).

Fayetteville, NC, Fayetteville Museum of Art, "Inaugural Exhibition of American Paintings and Sculpture from the Collection of the North Carolina Museum of Art," May 1-30, 1978.

Raleigh, NC, North Carolina Museum of Art, "Of Space and Time: Motion in Art," September 1985-September 1986.

North Wilkesboro, NC, Wilkes Art Gallery, "American Landscapes from the North Carolina Museum of Art," March 18-April 5, 1988.

Wilmington, NC, St. John's Museum of Art, "Inventing the American Landscape: A Dialogue with the Visual World," April 25-June 28, 1998; Hickory, NC, The Hickory Museum of Art, September 12-November 8, 1998; Fayetteville, NC, Fayetteville Museum of Art, November 22, 1998-January 17, 1999; Greenville, NC, Greenville Museum of Art, March 10-April 30, 1999, brochure (Outreach Exhibition).

Asheville, NC, Asheville Art Museum, long-term loan to be displayed with the permanent collection, September 2001- February 2004.
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