Nature Love

     "In December of 1993, a random survey of Americans from the 48 continental states was conducted in order to establish whether Americans had any sort of uniform preferences in art. When the results were compiled, the two artists who had designed the survey took the information that they had received and created a painting that represented the answers that they had been given.

     Overwhelming, Americans described artwork that bears striking similarity to the work of the Hudson River School artists. 88 percent voted for an outdoor scene, 49 percent wanted to see lakes and rivers, 19 percent forest, in comparison to only 3 percent who were interested in a work depicting a city. 44 percent stated that blue was their favorite color for artwork, followed by those who chose green at 14 percent. Black, fuchsia and other harsh colors counted for less than 5 percent of the response. As for size, the majority voted for a painting the size of a dishwasher." 

I found this quote from the University of Virginia page on the Hudson River School of painters to be particularly interesting in light of their claim that the American landscape has always played a critical role in shaping American culture and beliefs, contrary to what Tocqueville believed.  The overwhelming majority of Americans who prefer landscape paintings tends to indicate that Americans take a certain pleasure in natural sights, and like to incorporate them into their domestic lives.   In reading this quote, I found that for myself, it tends to be true.   While my favorite form of art to look at is modern, I would most prefer nature artwork in my home.   While I am not in complete accordance with this article, (I agree with Tocqueville that America as a whole is more concerned with technology, development, and expansion than the preservation of nature.)  I think that there is good merit in saying that while America tends to focus its national efforts on business and progress, individuals have, and probably always will, feel a sense of connection and love for nature.  The popularity of environmentally conscious movements is one example of this which hopefully will continue to grow and balance the destructive tendencies of industry.