Lake George and the Village of Caldwell

Based on a print of the same title by Jacques Milberg, this painting and seven other known versions represent one of Chambers’s most popular landscape subjects, set in upstate New York on the shores of Lake George. In this example, with its flushed sunset and idyllic waterway dotted with sailboats, the artist encapsulated the rapid transformation of the wilderness into settled land during this period. The village looms large as a flourishing haven of tourism, and the church’s spire stretches toward the horizon. Departing from Milberg’s print, Chambers simplified the foreground, by means of his distinctive shorthand style and vibrant palette. (Source: The Metropolitan Museum of Art)