An Old Government Toll Gate with Westward Bound Express
ca. 1879
Howard Pyle captures the dusty reality of American westward expansion in this atmospheric sketch. A team of horses strains against their harnesses, pulling a covered wagon past a rustic toll house nestled against a wooded hillside. The loose, painterly strokes give the scene a sense of movement, almost as if the wagon is rolling right off the page into the frontier. Pyle, often called the 'Father of American Illustration,' was famous for bringing historical adventures to life and teaching legends like N.C. Wyeth, and here he documents a quiet, gritty moment on the old National Road.
- Technique
- Watercolor and gouache
- Material
- Paper
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