Twilight in the Wilderness

The sun has just gone down behind distant hills, and the whole sky is burning. Streaks of red, orange and gold spread overhead, while the land below is already dark: a still lake, a fringe of forest and a few broken trees in silhouette. There are no people or houses anywhere. Church traveled widely in search of grand natural scenes and painted them on a large scale, and his huge canvases drew crowds when they were exhibited. Painted on the eve of the American Civil War, the picture has often been read as a sign of troubled times, but you can also take it simply as one evening: the last light, lingering.

Look closely

1. Find the brightest point of the sky. Where does the color go from there?
2. Look at the reflections in the lake.
3. Notice the dark trees in the foreground. How much detail can you see in them?

While you sit

The sun has gone down but the sky hasn’t finished yet. Stay for the whole of the afterglow.

Your seat in the galleries: a charred ash log bench, its cut end glowing red.