John Francis Murphy (American, 1853-1921) oil on canvas tonalist landscape painting, depicting a clearing in a line of autumn-hued trees with hills beyond; three young trees stand with bare branches at right while a small puddle of collected rainwater sits in the foreground, with an overcast sky overhead. Signed "J. Francis Murphy" lower right. Housed in a carved giltwood frame with pierced corners. Sight - 11 1/2" H x 15 1/2" W. Framed - 19" H x 23" W. Biography: John Francis Murphy, a leading tonalist landscape painter of the American Barbizon, was born 1853 in Oswego, New York. As a teen, he moved west with his family to Chicago, where he began painting billboards and theater backdrops. He received a few weeks of training at the Chicago Academy of Design, but was primarily self-taught. He found employment in New York as an illustrator, but was drawn to the countryside and began painting landscapes. A trip to France in 1886 deepened his familiarity with the work of the French Barbizon painters such as Corot, Rousseau and Duabigny. MurphyÕs middle-period landscapes show the influence of American tonalists A. H. Wyant, George Inness, and Homer Dodge Martin. MurphyÕs late paintings, created after 1900, are regarded as some of his best.