American Progress Painting Explained

The manifest destiny painting conveys the ideas of american progress in terms of transportation technologiesand the spirit of the frontier.

American progress painting explained. Sandweiss amherst college historian martha a. Crofutt reproduced the petite painting done in 1872 as a color lithograph poster and also engraved the image in the guidebooks he published widely circulating the image. It was painted by john gast in 1872 as a representation of manifest destiny. American progress follows the tradition of romanticism which began in europe.

John gast american progress 1872 martha a. Commissioned the creation of american progress by the brooklyn resident painter and lithographer john gast. The manifest destiny painting explains how the idea conviction and belief in the manifest destiny and the westward expansion of the nation was the fate and inevitable future of the nation. Introduction how useful is the painting american progress to a historian studying reasons why people went west.

Gasts painting by george crofutt that accompanied this widely distributed painting. In the painting gast shows that it was the americas destiny to expand spread technology and civilize the untamed west. American progress was painted for was those who were unsure if it was right to migrate west. American progress an allegory of manifest destiny was widely disseminated in chromolithographic prints.

It has been referred to as the classic image of the doctrine of american manifest destiny consider the meaning and implications of light and darkness in the gospel of john. Yet was americas expansion this destined peaceful movement of the country spreading west. The american progress painted by john gast in 1872 is a representation of the manifest destiny. American progress 1872 is a patriotic painting by john gast portraying the beauty of our countrys expansion.

Journalist john osullivan used the term manifest destiny in an editorial essay published in the new york morning news in 1845. The manifest destiny was the idea that the united states was destined by god to expand from the atlantic seaboard to the pacific ocean. Sandweiss demonstrates how john gasts 1872 painting which was widely disseminated as a commercial color print conveys a range of ideas about the frontier in nineteenth century america. This painting is called american progress.