Fitz Hugh Lane (1804- 1865)
Stage Fort across Gloucester Harbor , 1862 Fitz Henry Lane. Painting in the English and Dutch seascape tradition, Lane became one of America’s most admired marine painters, a skillful lithographer and the founding father of ‘Luminism.’ By Alexandra A. Jopp Fitz Hugh Lane (also known as Fitz Henry Lane), a founding figure of “Luminism,” was born Nathaniel Rogers Lane in Gloucester, Mass., on Dec. 19, 1804. A child prodigy, Lane would grow up to become one of the premier American artists of the nineteenth century, with works on display in 27 museums and the White House. His art retains a high status among collectors, and in 2004, his Manchester Harbor (1853) sold for $5.5 million at an auction in Boston. Fitz Hugh Lane (1804-1865), Brace's Rock, Eastern Point, Gloucester, c. 1864, oil on canvas, John Wilmderding Collection. This posthumous prosperity, though, is in stark contrast to Lane’s difficult childhood. His oldest brother, Steven, died in 1815, a yea...