A Hudson River School Classic: Asher Durand’s Kindred Spirits

One of the most well known and beloved of the Hudson River School is Asher B. Durand’s Kindred Spirits. This sweeping panoramic painting is on display in New York City’s Public Library. In this painting, two figures stand at the top of a cliff, inspired by the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. Like many of the hudson river school, Durand shows nature as the primary reality, while the human figures are only small creatures within the vast landscape. In this regard, the style has something in common with traditional Asian painting. The Americans of this period, however, were much more grandiose and romantic in their depiction of nature than the minimalistic styles of China and Japan.