This catalog accompanies the first monographic examination of the art of William Trost Richards in Boston. The exhibition, presented at the McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College, features oil paintings, watercolors, and drawings, including many rarely seen works from the artist's descendants. Richards, a leading figure among nineteenth-century landscape painters, reflects a key moment in the evolution of the genre. Through the illustration of over 150 works, the catalog spans Richards's career from his earliest sketches to his later masterful seascapes and landscapes. A range of styles and themes are also presented, highlighting the artist's hieroglyphic interpretation of nature, an interest of Romantic artists that was particular to their age of flourishing scientific discoveries.

This volume features research by scholars from various disciplines, including art history, American studies, literary studies, and geology. The writers delve into the personal and historical background of the artist and illuminate the links between Richards's works and the artistic, scientific, and philosophical currents of his era. The catalog sheds new light on Richards's art and on his position in the development of American art and the rise of environmental issues in American culture.