[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 17349]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               HONORING THE HUDSON RIVER SCHOOL PAINTERS

  Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary Committee be 
discharged from further consideration of S. Res. 278, and the Senate 
proceed to its immediate consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 278) honoring the Hudson River School 
     Painters for their contributions to the United States.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the resolution be 
agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, the motions to reconsider be laid 
upon the table, with no intervening action or debate, and any 
statements relating to the resolution be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 278) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                              S. Res. 278

       Whereas the Hudson River School was a mid-19th century 
     American art movement led by a group of landscape painters, 
     whose aesthetic vision was influenced by the romanticism 
     movement;
       Whereas the Hudson River School is considered the first 
     school of American art;
       Whereas the major Hudson River School painters included 
     Thomas Cole, Frederic Edwin Church, Asher Brown Durand, 
     Jasper Francis Cropsey, Sanford Robinson Gifford, Albert 
     Bierstadt, John Frederick Kensett, George Inness, Worthington 
     Whittredge, and Thomas Moran;
       Whereas the Hudson River School paintings captured the 
     striking landscape and sweeping natural beauty of the Hudson 
     River Valley and the surrounding New York areas, including 
     the Catskill, the Adirondack, and the White Mountains;
       Whereas Hudson River School paintings served a vital role 
     in cultivating American identity in the mid-19th century and 
     creating a sense of awe of the American landscape that 
     endures to this day;
       Whereas the Hudson River School painters influenced the 
     environmental conservation movement and the establishment of 
     the National Park System under President Theodore Roosevelt;
       Whereas the Hudson River School's portrayal of the Hudson 
     River Valley is a major source of tourism in the region;
       Whereas 2009 marks the 400th anniversary of the voyages of 
     discovery made by Henry Hudson and Samuel de Champlain, 
     recognizing the important role that the Hudson River and the 
     Hudson Valley played in the development and growth of the 
     United States;
       Whereas the Hudson River School painters depicted the 
     Hudson River Valley during the opening of the Erie Canal, 
     which linked the Hudson River with the Great Lakes and 
     created a main trade route from New York that fostered the 
     city's central place in the American economy;
       Whereas the Hudson River School painters celebrated the 
     ideals of American democracy, individuality, and progress;
       Whereas the Hudson River School painters illustrated themes 
     such as nature, conservation, civility, unity, education, 
     family, chivalry, and development;
       Whereas the Hudson River School painters expressed the 
     sense that every generation of Americans should seek to 
     preserve the naturalness of the continent; and
       Whereas the Hudson River School painters accentuated the 
     cardinal values of the 19th century, which can assist 
     contemporary Americans in the rebirth of American culture: 
     Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate recognizes and honors the Hudson 
     River School painters for their contributions to the United 
     States.

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