In the Wilderness

Of the present work, recognized Gifford expert Dr. Ila Weiss writes, "Control of color and tone, central to Gifford’s accomplishment, is perfectly illustrated in this work. The image is a celebration of autumn, asserted in the foreground’s yellow foliage and the red and orange shapes of trees and shrubs. These hues are subdued and lightened as they recede step-wise into luminous air, their sunlit accents diminishing in size and frequency with each layer of recession, evolving to warm greens and salmons mixing and blending toward sky color, itself gray-blue at the upper edge warming imperceptibly toward the center distance." (unpublished letter, 2025)