Rudolph Ingerle (American, 1879-1950) oil on canvas landscape painting titled "The Fascinating Ozarks" depicting a hillside with trees in the foreground, a still creek with a tree lined embankment and field with houses in the middle ground, and a range of pink and purple mountains in the early morning, background. Signed "R. F. Ingerle 15" lower right. Old paper label with title and artist's name en verso of stretcher. Housed in giltwood molded frame with acanthus carvings at corners. Sight - 23 3/4" H x 26 7/8" W. Framed - 31 3/4" H x 34 1/2" W. Early 20th century. Biography: Ingerle, sometimes called 'The Painter of the Smokies', was born to a Moravian family, immigrated to the U.S. as a child and studied at the Art Institute of Chicago. He was an early founder of the Indiana School of Painting in Brown County and the Society of Ozark Painters. Ingerle first visited the Smoky Mountains in 1920 and fell in love with Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina. At that time, the natural beauty of the area was threatened by logging companies. Ingerle painted numerous landscapes there and is among the artists credited with raising awareness of the need for protection, which helped result in the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 1934. His work was exhibited in one man shows at the Mint Museum and Hickory Museum of Art during his lifetime, and was featured in the 2006 Art of Tennessee exhibit at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts. (Additional high-resolution photos are available at www.caseantiques.com.)