Norton Bush (February 22, 1834 – April 24, 1894) was an American landscape painter. He did landscape paintings of California, Panama, Nicaragua, Peru and Ecuador, with a focus on Luminism.

Early life

Norton Bush was born on February 22, 1834, in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

. He learned landscape painting from William Harris in Rochester and

Jasper Francis Cropsey Jasper Francis Cropsey (February 18, 1823 – June 22, 1900) was an American architect and artist. He is best known for his Hudson River School landscape paintings. Early years Cropsey was born on his father Jacob Rezeau Cropsey's farm in R ...

of the

Hudson River School The Hudson River School was a mid-19th-century American art movement embodied by a group of landscape painters whose aesthetic vision was influenced by Romanticism. Early on, the paintings typically depicted the Hudson River Valley and the sur ...

in New York City. He was also mentored by

Frederic Edwin Church Frederic Edwin Church (May 4, 1826 – April 7, 1900) was an American landscape painting, landscape painter born in Hartford, Connecticut. He was a central figure in the Hudson River School of American landscape painters, best known for paintin ...

, who suggested he paint the landscapes of South America. In 1853, Bush emigrated to California via

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

Career

Bush became a professional landscape painter in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, initially on a part-time basis, until he opened a studio in the 1860s. His ''

Mount Diablo Mount Diablo is a mountain of the Diablo Range, in Contra Costa County, California, Contra Costa County of the eastern San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California. It is south of Clayton, California, Clayton and northeast of Danville, Califo ...

'' gave him name recognition after it was purchased by Willard Brigham Farwell, the president of the

Society of California Pioneers The Society of California Pioneers, established in 1850, is dedicated to the study and enjoyment of California art, history, and culture. Founded by individuals arriving in California before 1850 and thriving under the leadership of several gene ...

. Bush did landscape paintings of the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada ( ) is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primari ...

Lake Tahoe Lake Tahoe (; Washo language, Washo: ''dáʔaw'') is a Fresh water, freshwater lake in the Sierra Nevada of the Western United States, straddling the border between California and Nevada. Lying at above sea level, Lake Tahoe is the largest a ...

and

New England New England is a region consisting of six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York (state), New York to the west and by the ...

. However, most of his work consisted of landscape paintings of Central and South America, with a focus on Luminism. Bush was hired by

William Chapman Ralston William Chapman Ralston (January 12, 1826 – August 27, 1875) was a San Francisco businessman and financier, and the founder of the Bank of California. Biography William Chapman Ralston was born at Wellsville, Ohio, son of Robert Ralston III ...

to paint the landscapes of Panama, including the

Chagres River The Chagres River (), in central Panama, is the largest river in the Panama Canal's drainage basin. The river is dammed twice, and the resulting reservoirs—Gatun Lake and Lake Alajuela—form an integral part of the canal and its water ...

. He was subsequently hired by

Edwin B. Crocker Edwin Bryant Crocker (26 April 1818 – 24 June 1875) was a California Supreme Court Justice and founder of the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, California. Biography Crocker was born in Jamesville, New York, to Isaac and Elizabeth Crocker. He ...

to do landscape paintings of Nicaragua. Crocker later donated them to the

Crocker Art Museum The Crocker Art Museum is the oldest art museum in the Western United States, located in Sacramento, California. Founded in 1885, the museum holds one of the premier collections of Californian art. The collection includes American works dating f ...

. Bush was also hired by

Henry Meiggs Henry Meiggs (July 7, 1811 – September 30, 1877), known in Chile and Peru as Enrique Meiggs, was an American businessman. Business career Lumber Born on Jul 7, 1811, in Boston, Meiggs came to New York City in 1835 and began a lumber business ...

to do landscape paintings of Peru. His paintings were also purchased by the likes of

Leland Stanford Amasa Leland Stanford (March 9, 1824June 21, 1893) was an American attorney, industrialist, philanthropist, and Republican Party (United States), Republican Party politician from Watervliet, New York. He served as the eighth governor of Calif ...

and

James Clair Flood James Clair Flood (October 25, 1826 – February 21, 1889) was an American businessman who made a fortune from the Comstock Lode in Nevada. His mining operations are recounted to this day as an outstanding example of what may be done with a rich ...

. He also did landscape paintings of Ecuador. Bush was a member of the California Art Association, and the director of the

San Francisco Art Association The San Francisco Art Association (SFAA) was an organization that promoted California artists, held art exhibitions, published a periodical, and established the first art school west of Chicago. The SFAA – which, by 1961, completed a long sequen ...

from 1878 to 1880. His work was exhibited at the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...

. He won the gold medal at the

California State Fair The California State Fair (CSF) is the annual state fair for the state of California. The fair is held at Cal Expo in Sacramento, California. The Fair is a 17-day event showcasing California's industries, agriculture, and diversity of people. Th ...

multiple times.

Personal life and death

Bush resided in San Francisco, California, and he was a member of the

Bohemian Club The Bohemian Club is a private club with two locations: a city clubhouse in the Nob Hill district of San Francisco, California, and the Bohemian Grove, a retreat north of the city in Sonoma County. Founded in 1872 from a regular meeting of jour ...

. Bush died of complications from a cold he caught in Chicago on April 24, 1894, at the

Fabiola Hospital The Fabiola Hospital (also known as, ''Oakland Homeopathic Hospital and Dispensary Association'') is a defunct American hospital in Oakland, California. Named after Saint Fabiola, it was founded in 1876 by 18 women. The medical staff was composed ...

in Oakland, California. His funeral was held at the Unitarian Church in San Francisco.

References

External links

Artwork by Norton Bush
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bush, Norton 1834 births 1894 deaths Artists from Rochester, New York Painters from San Francisco 19th-century American painters American male painters American landscape painters Luminism (American art style) 19th-century American male artists