Summer Shades
Louis Maurer American, born Germany
Publisher Currier & Ives American
Not on view
In this picturesque pastoral scene, cows wade in a stream lined with tall trees, while a shepherd and his black dog lie napping on the grassy bank near grazing sheep. Nathaniel Currier, who established a successful New York-based lithography firm in 1835, produced thousands of hand-colored prints in various sizes that together create a vivid panorama of mid-to-late nineteenth century American life and its history. In 1857, Currier made James Merritt Ives, his brother Charles's brother-in-law, a business partner. People eagerly acquired Currier & Ives lithographs, such as those featuring landscapes, rural and city views, hunting and fishing scenes, domestic life and numerous other subjects, as an inexpensive way to decorate their homes or business establishments.
