For the vast majority of 19th century Americans, westward expansion was the overriding concern and land was the primary source of wealth. Not surprisingly, artists ventured into the Hudson River Valley, the Great Plains, the Rockies and the far reaches of the continent in search of landscapes as subject. The prevailing aesthetic for these artists was a form of realism that utilized on-the-spot studies, complete with an excess of details, to create compositions back in their studios.