Final answer:
Thomas Cole initiated a painting cycle that celebrated the American wilderness, foundational to the Hudson River School. His work, along with that of Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Moran, promoted the appreciation of America's landscapes and influenced the conservation movement and the creation of the National Park System.
Step-by-step explanation:
Thomas Cole and the American Wilderness
Thomas Cole began a painting cycle that celebrated the American wilderness and is credited as the founder of the Hudson River School, a movement that predominantly focused on landscape painting.
Despite being born in England, Cole's visions of the American landscape were foundational in shaping the perception of the American wilderness during the first half of the nineteenth century.
His iconographic work, such as 'The Oxbow,' juxtaposed untamed wilderness with pastoral settlement, thereby characterizing the national landscape's vast possibilities.
Additionally, artists like Albert Bierstadt and Thomas Moran further explored this motif, with their awe-inspiring paintings contributing significantly to the emerging appreciation and efforts of preservation of America's wild spaces.
Bierstadt's Rocky Mountain Landscape and Moran's works on Yellowstone are prime examples of how these artists' paintings incited an appreciation for the wilderness, leading to the establishment of the National Park System.
Sharing the aim of capturing the epic size of American landscapes, these artists were not only influential in the development of American art but also played a role in the environmental conservation movement. The artworks were motivational in initiating tourism, though this ironically led to the nascent degradation of natural resources. Nonetheless, their paintings continue to inspire contemporary efforts to preserve America's natural heritage.