The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 19, 2024

Sand Dunes, Carson Desert, Nevada

Sand Dunes, Carson Desert, Nevada

1867
(American, 1840–1882)
Image: 19.7 x 27 cm (7 3/4 x 10 5/8 in.); Mounted: 45.7 x 59.4 cm (18 x 23 3/8 in.); Matted: 50.8 x 61 cm (20 x 24 in.)
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

O’Sullivan took this while on a government expedition analyzing the future path of the transcontinental railroad.

Description

This noontime scene conveys a desolate place discovered by a lonely explorer. The artist chose a vantage point and framing that blocked the horizon and showed a single wagon—the former Civil War ambulance that he converted into a portable darkroom—and only two sets of footprints. However, over the previous 25 years, more than 165,000 people had passed near here on their way to California.
  • (Charles Isaacs Photographs, Inc., New York, NY)
    June 3, 2002
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 304-305
  • Charles Isaacs and Carol Nigro Collection of American Photography. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 26-September 10, 2003).
    The Modern West: American Landscapes, 1890-1950. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Houston, TX (organizer) (October 29, 2006-January 20, 2007); Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA (March 4-June 3, 2007).
  • {{cite web|title=Sand Dunes, Carson Desert, Nevada|url=false|author=Timothy H. O'Sullivan|year=1867|access-date=19 March 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2002.45