American Studies Commons^™

The Domestication Of History In American Art: 1848-1876, Jochen Wierich

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

This dissertation traces the decline of history painting and its domestication in Other artistic forms in the United States. In the three decades between the Mexican-American War and the Centennial, the market for historical art went through a major transformation. Artists shifted from historical to contemporary subjects or represented historical themes in everyday-domestic settings. Monumental history painting, which was supported by art unions and private patrons during the antebellum period, came under critical attack and lost its status as a form of high art. Critical opinion turned especially against paintings of historical struggle and heroic sacrifice which seemed to be …