[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 181 (Tuesday, November 29, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2123]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            A TRIBUTE TO THE HUDSON RIVER SCHOOL OF PAINTING

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                          HON. ROBERT A. BRADY

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 29, 2011

  Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to join several 
of my other colleagues in honoring America's first and most prestigious 
school of painting. Known as the Hudson River School of Painting, this 
19th century school popularized the American landscape.
  I have a connection to the Hudson River School. One of the school's 
most popular and prolific artists, Thomas Moran, grew up in 
Philadelphia. He later worked at a local engraving firm, which sparked 
his interest in painting. Moran soon garnered attention for his 
paintings and was hired to paint scenes of the wilderness of the 
American West. These paintings, for which Moran is best known, are 
primarily from the area that is today Yellowstone National Park.
  Moran's massive landscapes, and works by other Hudson River School 
painters, inspired Congress to dedicate Yellowstone, as well as 
Yosemite and Acadia, as National Parks. Eventually, these paintings 
were used by environmental conservationists to encourage Congress to 
form the National Park Service in 1916.
  Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to join me in my appreciation 
for the works of painter Thomas Moran, and for the lasting legacy of 
the first indigenous American school of painting, the Hudson River 
School.

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