Thomas Hill

Immigrating from England in 1844, Thomas Hill came to America with his family as a youngster, and became one of America’s most famous 19th-century landscape painter, especially of panoramic views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and Yosemite.  He also painted landscapes of the Grand Canyon and Yellowstone National Park, where he was particularly fascinated by the geysers.

Hill studied art in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania Academy, and his first intentions were to become a history painter.  However, he changed to landscape when he spent time in Europe, especially France among the Barbizon painters and in the studio of Paul Meyerheim.