James David Smillie was the eldest son in a family of engravers and painters. His etchings, dry points, aquatints and lithographs were probably his most significant contribution to the art of his period, but later in his career he achieved status as a landscape painter. Like that of his younger brother, George, also a landscapist, his work was influenced by the earlier Hudson River School of painters. He landscapes, however, had a certain dryness, probably a carry-over from his years as an engraver.

Smillie was born in New York City in 1833. His father was a well -known engraver and, working with him, James made his first engraving plate when he was eight. He collaborated with his father until he was 31, working largely on bank note vignettes. In1857, the pair also made the engravings for Emory's Mexican Boundary Survey.

Even after taking up painting, Smillie continued his interest in engraving. For Volume 1 of Picturesque America, published in 1872, he wrote the section on the Yosemite Valley and illustrated it with some 20 engravings.

After a trip to Europe in 1864,he turned to landscape painting. His favorite scenes were mountains, and he painted many noted American ranges from the East and West.

Biography courtesy of Roughton Galleries, www.antiquesandfineart.com/roughton