Worthington Whittredge executed many finished oil sketches. These detailed and lush studies of trees and intimate spots in nature are often as rewarding as the fuller compositions they preceded. View of Lake George is possibly from the late 1860’s, after the Civil War when his work became more naturalist in manner. His focus in this work is clearly on the grove of trees and capturing the limbs, their foliage and the character of the trees. Perhaps without fully intending it, the great appeal to the work, in addition to the mastery of the execution, is the fresh and relaxed feel to the view in general. In many ways, a sketch such as this one exemplifies a naturalist style at its best.

This is not a wilderness view. The artist clearly positioned himself in a cleared field of a property looking toward the boundary of the fence of the property. The trees which have been ravaged by the forces of nature are majestic in their twisted and aged state and the boulders before us give a sense of depth and perspective.

Many exhibitions at museums and books have been devoted to the sketches made by Hudson River School artists. These sketches are often the chronicles of their travels and the closest perspective we have to their working in situ. Often these artists would execute the sketches, carrying the minimal amount of materials trekking out in nature would allow and then work from these to do complete compositions, the result of their melding the sketches and working from memory to achieve certain effects. This piece is signed and is on a canvas which leads us to believe it was not a lesser sketch but one of merit and saleability in the eyes of the artist.