The Old Mill

The Old Mill — George Inness. 1849.

Medium: Oil on canvas. Dimensions: 75.9 × 107 cm (29 7/8 × 42 1/8 in.).

Collection record: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

George Inness began painting landscapes during a period in which the public preferred depictions of the untamed American wilderness; throughout his career, however, he insisted upon the importance of the cultivated landscape as a subject for art. In this work, the brightly lit figures and mill contrast with the shadowy darkness of the trees, suggesting the potential for danger at the edge of the forest. The rundown mill represents a stable, settled area but also points to the changes brought about by industrialization. Inness thus created a contradictory view of rural life that celebrates its simplicity and safety while hinting at its decline.

Description: © Art Institute of Chicago, original record, CC BY 4.0. HTML formatting removed; wording retained. Other artwork metadata: CC0.

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.