John Muir

Artist

Orlando Rouland, 1871 - 1945

Sitter

John Muir, 21 Apr 1838 - 24 Dec 1914

Exhibition Label

For Scottish-born naturalist John Muir, the unchecked exploitation of America's natural resources in the late nineteenth century was a tragedy. With his gifts for repartee, descriptive writing, and summarizing the essence of issues, he played a decisive role in protecting such areas of the American West as the Yosemite Valley, the Grand Canyon, and the Petrified Forest. Founder of the Sierra Club, active lobbyist, and author of numerous articles and such books as Our National Parks (1901), Muir became America's leading conservationist. During Theodore Roosevelt's presidency, he led the effort to preserve some 148 million acres of forest.

This portrait's pensive quality reflects Muir's lifelong preference for solitude. Of the urban environment, he once said, "Often I thought I would like to explore the city, if, like a lot of wild hills and valleys, it was cleared of inhabitants."

Provenance

Mrs. Mary Williamson Averell Harriman [Mrs. Edward Henry Harriman, 1851-1932], New York; gift December 1919 for National Portrait Gallery; transferred from NCFA 1965.

Credit Line

National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; transfer from the Smithsonian American Art Museum; gift of Mary W. Harriman, 1920

c. 1917 from a 1909 photograph

Object number

NPG.65.79

Restrictions & Rights

CC0

Type

Painting

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

Stretcher: 92.7 x 72.4 x 2.5cm (36 1/2 x 28 1/2 x 1")

Frame: 106 x 85.4 x 6.4cm (41 3/4 x 33 5/8 x 2 1/2")

Exhibition

20th Century Americans: 1900-1930 (re-installation 2012)

On View

NPG, South Gallery 322

National Portrait Gallery

Topic

Printed Material\Book

Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Mustache

Personal Attribute\Facial Hair\Beard

John Muir: Male

John Muir: Natural Resources\Explorer

John Muir: Literature\Writer\Magazine article

John Muir: Society and Social Change\Reformer\Environmentalist

John Muir: Literature\Writer\Novelist

John Muir: Science and Technology\Scientist\Naturalist

John Muir: Literature\Writer\Nature writer

Portrait

Record ID

npg_NPG.65.79

Usage of Metadata (Object Detail Text)

CC0

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/sm434670a4d-06ac-43bf-9a07-b1abf9efa8e6