A Healing Wilderness

      Nature's healing ability has been a common theme in class. The clear, fresh air of the park was thought to help tuberculosis patients and who could forget Adirondack Murray's description of an invalid's miraculous recovery after spending time in the park? However improbable some of the descriptions of the Adirondacks' healing abilities, there were enough documented stories of improved health to make the park a destination for the sickly. Not only was the wilderness purported to heal the body, but its ability to soothe the soul was also well known. It was this notion that led many artists to the park, as "the Adirondacks became the theatre in which both artists and philosophers, through their works, exercised their belief that nature could direct mankind in healing its wounds" (Mandel, 19). From the Mandel reading, it seems that many Adirondack painters were drawn to the wilderness not just for its natural light and striking colors but for the therapeutic effect of portraying its beauty, and transferring that beauty to others through their work. Mandel notes that "The initial animus for artistic change was a fascination with the wilderness, to know it first in a scientific, explorative way, then, as exploration made the terrain less "savage" and more accessible, to use it for the spiritual solace and self-expression" (Mandel 28). Adirondack painters like Thomas Cole, Asher Durand, Winslow Homer, and William James were a part of this second movement. Although each artist employed a different style, their impetus was the same. It is probable that just as many people traveled to the Adirondacks to heal emotional ills as did those searching for physical healing, and these painters are a central reason for this. The portrayals of the vast wilderness is in stark contrast to the din and hubbub of city life, and its no wonder that people would be drawn to it.