Sketch of Mountains, Peaks, and Terrain (from Sketchbook) 1890

Albert Bierstadt made this pencil sketch of mountains, peaks and terrain some time in the mid to late nineteenth century. It comes from a sketchbook. Bierstadt was a key figure in the Hudson River School, and this sketch gives us a glimpse into the visual language of expansionism and manifest destiny. His landscapes weren’t just pretty pictures; they were powerful tools that shaped how Americans saw their place in the world, especially in relation to the western territories. His dramatic, often idealized, views of the American West helped fuel the idea of the landscape as a source of national pride and a resource to be conquered. To understand this sketch, one can look to the cultural and economic forces that shaped its creation. Examining period literature and political discourse reveals how artists contributed to national myths and expansionist ideologies.