Charles E. Burchfield (1893-1967)

Zoar Valley, Cattaraugus, New York

Many art critics praised this painting exhibited at the Rehn Gallery, including M. Breuning, writing for the New York Evening Post on October 31, 1932:

Among the water colors of this remarkable exhibition there is one oil painting included, “Sunburst.” It is a large canvas showing the sudden, dazzling brilliance of the emergence of the sun from a dark cloud while the stretch of the valley beneath lies in shadow. It is like an orchestration of elementary forces into a rumbling harmony that our ears attuned to mild melodies welcome. It is the “Gotterdammerung” in terms of another artistic medium, but none the less colossal in conception and effect. This is one of the exhibitions of the week that one may recommend without any reservations.  No one who feels the stimulation of original, creative art should miss this exhibition.

—Nancy Weekly