AN ICONIC COLLEGE VIEW: "SWARTHMORE COLLEGE" RUMMELL, RICHARD (1848-1924) - Students here are hard workers and highly directed. It is also has a spectacular collection of mature trees.

Swarthmore College

Richard Rummell

Restrike engraving from the original plate (c.1913)

Printed on heavy woven paper and hand colored

Plate Size: 17 x 29 ¼ 

Price: $600.00

At the turn of the century, the accomplished landscape artist Richard Rummell (1848-1924) painted a panoramic bird’s-eye view watercolor of Swarthmore College. In this selection of paintings of American colleges and universities, Rummell selected the twenty best colleges in the nation at the time of painting. His inclusion of these universities in his oeuvre indicates his immense respect for these institutions. From this watercolor, a copper-plate was engraved and a limited number of pulls (engravings) were distributed. Today, Arader Galleries owns the collection of copper plates used for engraving and watercolors. Using the original process and 100 year old original plates, Arader is proudly re-striking and making the beautiful college view available for acquisition the same way it was 100 years ago.

Swarthmore College was founded in 1864 by the Society of Friends (better known as Quakers) who sought to create a co-ed institution with the purpose of providing their children a liberal arts education regardless of sex. Born from the efforts of Friends from New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, Swarthmore College was established, and accepted its first class in 1869, which included fifteen women. Named for the hall which served as a headquarters for the Society of Friends, the college was led by Edward Parish who sought to make higher education more accessible. Many years later, the college has continued its tradition of liberal arts excellence while branching out into the sciences.  

The iconic Magill Walk runs from the foreground of the view to the background, flanked by trees. The walk leads to the entrance of Parish Hall, the original building for the college. It caught fire in 1881 and burned down to its stone walls. Fortunately renovation efforts were a resounding success, and the hall reopened a year later on the anniversary of the fire. Currently it is home to the college administration, along with several student activities including the campus newspaper The Phoenix, named in honor of the beloved hall which rose from the ashes. The upper floors of the hall serve as student housing. The McCabe Library is to the right and slightly to the foreground of Parish hall. It houses the Peace Collection and the Friends Historical Library, along with a rare book room. Left of Parish Hall, the dome of the Hormel-Nyugen Intercultural Center can be seen. Further left of the Center, Wharton Hall is in view. Behind Parish Hall, a row of three halls stand on a grassy plain behind a row of trees. Leftmost is the rectangular Beardsley Hall, to the right of which are Trotter Hall and Pearson Hall. Currently occupied by the Arts department and some theater rehearsal spaces, Old Tarble takes center stage in the right foreground of the view.

To order a college view, please email loricohen@aradergalleries.com or call 215-796-0358 (mobile) or 215-735-8811 (landline).