Ducks in the Woods

Startled by the viewer’s arrival in this quiet forest interior, three ducks take flight from a calm stream. Hart Beers skillfully depicted the ducks’ curved and pointed wings, the texture of bark and tangle of foliage, and the highlights of sun rendered in dabs of yellow and turquoise. One of the first professional women landscape painters in the United States, Hart Beers became known for her close observation of nature and highly detailed forest views. Although the precise location of the landscape is unknown, it was likely inspired by on-the-spot sketches that Beers executed in New Jersey, or upstate New York.