In this painting, Sonja focused on the church courtyard and the view of Renwick in the background. She loves painting the architecture of these two buildings along with the lovely brick path and wrought iron fencing. An ongoing theme in her works, you’ll see the contrast between hard lines of the building, stone and iron against the soft surroundings of the trees, light and shadows.
This is one of Sonja's very favorite views of the City because it’s not one we see too often of the Renwick steeple. This building dates back to 1851 and was designed by James Renwick Jr. in the French Gothic style.
Renwick designed some of the most famous buildings in America, Most notably two of the Smithsonian Institution Buildings in Washington D.C. and St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York. By the looks of it, it’s easy to mistake it for a church converted to a courthouse, but it was indeed originally built as a courthouse.
Also pictured in this painting is the Fredericksburg Presbyterian Church, which was built in 1833. Clara Barton visited this location during the American Civil War to nurse the wounded after the Battle of Fredericksburg in 1862.
- Framed: 26 x 20 x 2 in
- Subject Matter: Landscape Building