Frederic Church’s Olana, part 2
Church's Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante

Frederic Church’s Olana, part 2

For more on Olana, see part 1 of this series. You can see this as a video at https://youtu.be/ZhUlygHPAGE.

Olana: grounds

Church worked on the landscaping of his home for decades. Nothing about it is accidental, including the way visitors come around a turn in the carriage road and are stunned by a magnificent view. Often there’s even a bench, so one can sit down for a while and appreciate the vista.

Church’s Olana: view from the grounds. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana: view from the grounds.

Olana: exterior of the house

Coming up the carriage road, visitors got tantalizing glimpses of the house.

Church’s Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana, exterior. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante

The two photos below are the back of the house, including the huge windows of Church’s studio. This is the side you see as you park at Olana for the tour.

Church’s Olana, back of the house. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante
Church’s Olana: exterior of the studio. Photo copyright © 2023 Dianne L. Durante

Church’s own views of Olana

And finally: here are two of Church’s sketches that let you see the area around Olana as Church himself saw it.

Church, Winter Twilight from Olana, 1871. Oil on paper, 10 x 12.9 in. Olana State Historic Site, Hudson, NY. Image: Wikipedia
Church, Clouds over Olana, 1872. Oil on paper, 8 5/8 x 12 1/8 in. Olana State Historic Site, Hudson, New York. Image: Wikipedia.

More

  • The images in these two posts are not completely representative of Olana. They’re just the ones that came out best of aspects I chose to photograph. You should definitely visit Olana yourself! But if you can’t, Olana’s site has fantastic photos and videos.
  • More great examples of carefully preserved artist’s homes and studios: the Saint Gaudens National Historic Site and Daniel Chester French’s Chesterwood.
  • Want wonderful art delivered weekly to your inbox? Check out my Sunday Recommendations list and rewards for recurring support: details here. For examples of favorite recommendations from past years, click here.