Edward Beyer (1820-1865)

Album of Virginia or Illustration of the Old Dominion

Lithographs with original hand-coloring.

Richmond, Virginia: 1858

Edward Beyer was German by origin, and came to America in 1848 to win great renown as an artist of landscapes and panoramic views.   During his time in the U.S., he lived in both Cincinnati and Philadelphia, where there was a ready market for his paintings and lithographs.  Yet despite his artistic and financial success in those cities, he spent the vast majority of his American period in the state of Virginia.  The artistic inspiration he found in Virginia's pastoral landscape and historic monuments was irresistible, and he returned again and again to paint the views and scenes he encountered.  

The Album of Virginia is considered Beyer's master work, in which he captured the beauty of the state in all its peaceful glory.  Beyer came to know Virginia very well over the course of the years he spent there, and portrayed with accuracy the state's natural and man-made wonders, as well as its historical sites and towns.  Together, Beyer's glimpses of Virginia give a comprehensive view of the place to which he was drawn throughout his life, and allow the viewer to share his appreciation for the landmarks and the sprawling landscapes that characterized the state.  Each of Beyer's illustrations is of the highest quality, with an atmospheric character that makes the subjects of his Album appear ethereal.