New photography by Ed Pollard captured with a digital camera-2008.

God's Judgment Upon Gog

Artist Asher Brown Durand (American, 1796-1886)

CultureAmerican

Dateca. 1851-1852

MediumOil on canvas

Dimensions60 3/4 x 50 1/2 in. (154.3 x 128.3 cm)
Overall, Frame: 70 1/4 x 60 1/2 in. (178.4 x 153.7 cm)

Credit LineGift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.

Object number71.499

Collections

American Art before 1945

On View

Chrysler Museum of Art, Gallery 211

DescriptionThis oil on canvas painting was inspired by the Old Testament wherein Ezekiel foretells God's destruction of Gog, the infidel prince of Rosh, Meshech and Tubal. In the painting, Ezekiel, standing on the lower left promontory, calls forth at God's command predatory birds and wild beasts to devour Gog's troops. The troops fill the valley; the birds sweep down from the sky and the wild beasts, seen in the foreground, approach the troops.

Label TextAsher B. Durand American, 1796—1886 God’s Judgment Upon Gog, ca. 1851-52 Oil on canvas In the shadows at the bottom of this valley, birds and wild beasts devour the army of Gog, the evil prince. The Hebrew Bible prophet Ezekiel stands above on a rocky pulpit and calls forth a divine vengeance. Asher B. Durand unleashes all of his skill as a landscape painter to depict this violent scene, using a storm and jagged mountains to reinforce the mood. Durand became best known for his depictions of lush New England scenery. However, like many other American landscape painters, he remained deeply interested in the way that landscape could express grand themes and lofty ideals. Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr. 71.499 ProvenanceCollection of Jonathan Sturges, New York, N.Y.; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, N.Y., Gift in memory of Jonathan Sturges by his children, 1895; Plaza Art Gallery, New York, N.Y., June 7, 1956 (cat. no. 63); Padawer Galleries, New York, N.Y.; Collection of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.; Chrysler Art Museum of Provincetown, Mass., October 4, 1960; Gift of Walter P. Chrysler, Jr., to the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk, Va., 1971. Exhibition HistoryNational Academy of Design, New York, N.Y., 1852. (Exh. cat. no. 139) "American Paintings in Southern Museums," Hunter Museum of Art, Chattanooga, Tenn., September 1 - October 31, 1975. (Exh. cat. no. 88) "Three Hundred Years of American Art in the Chrysler Museum," Chrysler Museum at Norfolk, Va., March 1 - July 4, 1976. (Exh. cat. pp. 108-109) "Treasures from the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk and Walter P. Chrysler, Jr.," Tennesee Fine Arts Center at Cheekwood, Nashville, Tenn., June 12 - September 5, 1977. (Exh. cat. no.29) "New York - The State of Art," The University of the State of New York, Albany, N.Y., October 8, 1977 - January 15, 1978. "Veronese to Franz Kline: Masterworks from the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk," for the benefit of The Chrysler Museum Art Reference Library, Wildenstein & Co., New York, N. Y., April 13 - May 13, 1978. (Exh. cat. no. 30) "American Sublime: Landscape Painting in the United States 1820-1880," Tate Britain, England, February 20 - May 19, 2002; Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Pa., June 17 - August 25, 2002; Minneapolis Institute of Arts, Minn., September 22 - November 17, 2002. "Reopening of the Joan P. Brock Galleries," Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Va., Opening in March of 2008. Published ReferencesDennis R. Anderson, "God's Judgement Upon Gog," _Chrysler Museum Bulletin_ 3, no. 3 (March 1974). Dennis R. Anderson, _Three Hundred Years of American Art in the Chrysler Museum_, exh. cat., Norfolk, Va., 1975, 108-109. Eric M. Zafran and Mario Amaya, _Treasures from the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk and Walter P. Chrysler, Jr._, exh. cat., Tennessee Fine Arts Center at Cheekwood, Nashville, Tenn., 1977, no. 29. Eric M. Zafran and Mario Amaya, _Veronese to Franz Kline: Masterworks from the Chrysler Museum at Norfolk_ exh. cat., Chrysler Museum, Norfolk, Va., 1978, 32, 67. Mahonri Sharp Young, "Primitive to Pop," _Apollo_ 107 (Apr., 1978), 46-51. Wayne Craven, "Asher B. Durand's Imaginary Landscapes," _The Magazine Antiques_ (November 1979): 1120-1127, frontispiece. _The Chrysler Museum: Selections from the Permanent Collection, Norfolk, Virginia_ (Norfolk: Chrysler Museum, 1982), 82. William H. Gerdts and Mark Thistlethwaite, _Grand Illusions: History Painting in America_ (Fort Worth, Tex.: Amon Carter Museum, 1988), 65-66, fig. 33. J. Gray Sweeney. "'Endued with Rare Genius,' Frederic Edwin Church's To the Memory of Cole," _Smithsonian Studies in American Art_ (December 1988): 63, fig. 23. J. Gray Sweeney, "The Nude of Landscape Painting: Emblematic Personification in the Art of the Hudson River School," _Smithsonian Studies in American Art_ 3 (September 1989): 63, note 23. Jefferson C. Harrison, _The Chrysler Museum Handbook of the European and American Collections: Selected Paintings, Sculpture and Drawings_ (Norfolk: The Chrysler Museum, 1991), 100. Angela Miller, _The Empire of the Eye: Landscape Representation and American Cultural Politics, 1825-1875_ (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1993), 111-112, fig. 20. William Ayres, ed., _Picturing History: American Painting, 1770-1930_, exh. cat., Fraunces Tavern Museum, New York, N.Y., 1993, 86-87, plate 57. William H. Truettner and Alan Wallach, ed., _Thomas Cole: Landscape into History_, exh. cat., National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., 1994, 112-113, 121, plate no. 132. Denny L. Brown, ed., _From Eden to Armageddon: A Biblical History of the World in Classic Art and Illustration_ (Salt Lake, Utah: Shadow Mountain, 1998), 226. ISBN: 1573453714 Gail E. Husch, _Something Coming: Apocalyptic Expectation and Mid-Nineteenth Century American Painting_ (Hanover: University Press of New England, 2000), 178, pl. 11. David Bjelajac, _American Art: A Cultural History_ (London: Laurence King Publishing, 2000), 206. Andrew Wilton and Tim Barringer, _American Sublime: Landscape Painting in the United States 1820-1880_, exh. cat., Tate Britain, London, Eng., 2002, 88-90. Charles C. Eldredge, _Tales from the Easel: American Narrative Paintings from Southeastern Museums, circa 1800-1950_, exh. cat., Southeastern Art Museum Directors Consortium, Columbus Museum, Ga., 2004, 14. Martha N. Hagood and Jefferson C. Harrison, _American Art at the Chrysler Museum: Selected Paintings, Sculpture, and Drawings_ (Norfolk, Va.: Chrysler Museum of Art, 2005), 62-63, no. 32. Margaret S. Odell, _Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary: Ezekiel_ (Macon: Smyth & Helwys Publishing, Inc., 2005), 464. Linda S. Ferber, _Kindred Spirits: Asher B. Durand and the American Landscape_ ,exh. cat., Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn, New York, 2007, 216 & 217. Jeff Harrison, _Collecting with Vision: Treasures From the Chrysler Museum of Art_ (London: D. Giles Ltd., 2007), 62, fig. 63. Maurice S. Lee, ed., _The Cambridge Companion to Frederick Douglass_ (New York: Cambridge University, 2009), front cover. Christine I. Oaklander, "Fascinating Information Revealed: The Jonathan Sturges Receipt Books," _Archives of American Art Journal_ 53 (fall 2014): 122-135. Dominique de Font-Réaulx and Jean de Loisy, _Une Brève Histoire de l'Avenir_ (Paris: Musée du Louvre in conjunction with Hazan, 2015) 123, fig. 6. Annette Blaugrund, _Thomas Cole: The Artist as Architect_ (New York: Thomas Cole National Historic Site and The Monacelli Press, 2016) 96, fig. 13. Franklin Kelly, et. al., _Thomas Cole's Studio: Memory and Inspiration_ (Catskill, NY: Thomas Cole National Historic Site with Hirmer, 2022) 65, fig. 47.