The image shows a bird's-eye view of a pastoral community with a central large building complex surrounded by lush greenery and small structures. The horizon is high, displaying rolling hills and a light-filled sky. The brushstrokes are detailed, highlighting symmetrical trees, fields, and buildings. The color palette includes greens, reds, browns, and soft blues, accented by white picket fences and an American flag. Horse-drawn carriages and small figures are visible, and smoke rises from a chimney in the distance. Vignettes around the border show additional buildings and scenes linked to the community.
Read the visual description

The image shows a bird's-eye view of a pastoral community with a central large building complex surrounded by lush greenery and small structures. The horizon is high, displaying rolling hills and a light-filled sky. The brushstrokes are detailed, highlighting symmetrical trees, fields, and buildings. The color palette includes greens, reds, browns, and soft blues, accented by white picket fences and an American flag. Horse-drawn carriages and small figures are visible, and smoke rises from a chimney in the distance. Vignettes around the border show additional buildings and scenes linked to the community.

National Gallery of Art · Painting

Berks County Almshouse, 1895

Louis Mader

Date
1895
Medium
oil on metal
Dimensions
overall: 82.9 x 100.7 cm (32 5/8 x 39 5/8 in.) framed: 95.2 x 113.5 x 4.7 cm (37 1/2 x 44 11/16 x 1 7/8 in.)
Classification
Painting
Accession number
1953.5.25
Credit line
Gift of Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch
Time span
1876 to 1900
Department
CAB

Subjects and terms

  • painted surface
  • American
  • exterior
  • architecture
  • PA
  • American Naive Paintings
  • Naive
  • Almshouse
  • Berks County
Provenance

Recorded as from Reading, Pennsylvania. Purchased in 1947 by Edgar William and Bernice Chrysler Garbisch; gift to NGA, 1953.

Inscription

lower right: Louis Mader; lower center: View of the Berks-County-Almshouse, 1895. / DIRECTORS: DR. WM. H. SEITZINGER--JOHN A. HIESTER--JONATHAN W. SCHWARTZ. / STEWARD: JOHN W. GILBERT--UNDER STEWARD: OLIVER C. SITLER. / CLERK: SAMUEL M. DECK.

NGA object ID 42428. Collection metadata is reproduced under CC0. This work is included because its NGA published-image record is marked open access; visitors should recheck the source record before substantial reuse.