GVSU Collection

Grand Valley State University is the largest public repository of Alten’s work. In conjunction with the holdings of the Alten Family Archives in the Special Collections of the University Libraries, the George and Barbara Gordon Gallery has become a vital resource for the study of the artist. This page is a digital archive of all of Alten's work in the GVSU permanent art collection .

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Reproduction of an image originally painted by Mathias Alten of a basket of fruit.

Basket of Peaches and Plums

Portrait of a young girl with curly hair and a bow.

Portrait of Anita Marie Gilleo (Unfinished)

Building on the end of a pier.

Fishing Boats at Rockport, 1931

Water scene at sunset, blue water with yellows, pinks and oranges in the sky.

Sunset, Lake Michigan

Oil on canvas painting of the shoreline of a channel.

View of Channel

Oil on canvas image of a sandy shoreline with a few green shrubs and trees.

Lakeshore with Fisherman and Cedars

Oil on canvas painting of a sandy shoreline with some hilly areas in the sand.

Lake Michigan Beach

Four white sailboats in water, trees in the distance.

Sailboats on Reed's Lake

Two harnessed draft horses standing in a field.

Haying Time

Landscape with a pond, trees, and clouds against a blue sky in the background.

Autumn Landscape with Pond

Portrait of woman with Spanish style hat with rose under it and wearing a pink wrap on blue background.

Model with Spanish Hat (left profile)

Oil on canvas painting of a small blue body of water surrounded by green.

The Channel at Grand Haven

Oil on canvas image of a landscape with dark grey barren trees.

Landscape with Bare Trees

Oil on canvas painting of an area with tall trees and grass.

Upright Pines

Oil on canvas painting of tree with bright red and orange fall colored leaves.

Autumn Landscape, Lyme

Oil on canvas painting of a wooden split rail fence with gate.

Summer Landscape with Split Rail Fence, Lyme

Oil painting on canvas and board of two cows, one from the rear, one from the side.

Cows Along the Shore, Lyme

Still life of yellow and white chrysanthemum flowers against a dark background and a fabric covered table.

Chrysanthemums

Portrait of a woman with her hair in braids.

Portrait of Bertha Schwind

Light reflecting off tan/brown rocks and blue water.

Rocks at Laguna Beach

Person on a white horse, holding a the reigns of a brown horse.

Waiting, Taos

Large yellow and orange bush at the center with nearly bare trees behind.

Autumn Landscape with Birch

White house tucked into trees with yellow, orange and green leaves.

Old Homestead

People on the beach pulling sailboats to shore.

Windy Day, Cabañal

Tan hills with orange and yellow tree.

Autumn Landscape with Hill and Stream

On side A, Europeans are approaching the shore in a rowboat, their ship in the background.

Study for Landing Vignette

On side A, three angels hover over the landscape.

Sketched of Winged Female Figure

Double sided sketch.

Sketches of Carpenters at Work

Man using a white and a black horse to plow a field.

Watering Hole

Man with a white horse logging.

Logging, Ryswyk

Three men standing to the right of the picture next to a stack of timber.

Dutch Loggers, Ryswyk

Dutch man standing in the center of the image cutting wood with logs surrounding and trees with a pale sky in the background.

Dutch Woodcutter

Man in small boat on the right side of the image, coming up to a white bridge with two buildings in the background.

Dutchman with Canal Boat

Cows grazing by a river, dark brown ground below and dark green trees behind the cows.

Cows Grazing By A River, In An Early Autumn Landscape

Man with a cart of hay being pulled by two large oxen.

Man with Team of Oxen and Hay Wagon, Lyme

Sea scene of rocky waterfront.

Fisherman's Cove at Low Tide, Laguna

Landscape scene with a Sycamore tree with brown leaves is in the center.

California Sycamore

Man on top of a large pile of hay sitting in a horse-drawn cart.

Unloading Salt Hay, Lyme

Bright scene of green trees and grass along the banks of a river or creek.

Stormy Day

Red roses in glass vase sitting on a white table against a gray background.

Red Roses in a Glass Vase Table

Landscape in light, bright colors including blue sky, white clouds and green grass.

Spring Landscape

Gray-haired man wearing a white shirt and gray pants.

Self Portrait, Myself at 66

Figure sitting on a log on the beach with many seagulls flying off the beach over the person's head.

Gulls of Leland

A portrait of a woman in a red dress, a white blazer.

Portrait of Bertha M. Shead

Nude brunette with Amaryllis flower seated upon white bed.

Nude with Amaryllis

Water on view from a hill, multi-colored trees and buildings below the hill.

Brower Lake

Three sailboats are pushed together.

Tarpon Springs

White arches with brick buildings behind them.

Mission San Juan Capistrano

Young woman in pink dress seated in wooden chair with one elbow resting on the back of the chair.

Portrait of a Lady

Portrait of a man with glasses seated in a wooden chair wearing black judicial robes.

Portrait of Chief Justice Walter H. North

Multiple people around a boat just barely in the water.

Pulling Out

Small barnyard scene with animals including sheep, goats and a turkey.

Sheep, Goats and Turkey, Taos

Oil on canvas on board framed painting of a portrait of a man with long braided hair, a purple/red shirt with a white cloth over one shoulder.

Lorenzo, Taos

Bishop in red wearing a gold cross sitting in chair with Bible in lap.

Portrait of Bishop Joseph Gabriel Pinten

Bright blue sky with mountains.

House with Stream and Mountains, Taos

Tan building with a white door.

Rancho de Taos (Mission San Francisco de Asis)

Portrait of man standing with one hand on left hip; wearing light-colored suit with red tie tucked into it.

Portrait of Ralph W. Demmon

Your Press Boy’s Greeting / Grand Rapids Press Calendar

Portrait of a man sitting in a chair.

Portrait of John A. Klise

Grassy hill with orange and green trees.

Sassafras and Sumac

A painting of Bishop Kelly wearing a white and purple cassock and alb.

Portrait of Bishop Edward Kelly

Woman with colorful dress; orange flower by her right hip.

Portrait of Camelia Alten Demmon

Woman with dark hair and dark veil with a white clip sitting on wooden chair.

Model with Black Mantilla

Man riding oxen.

Oxen, Driver and Boat at Cabañal

White house with a bridge over water.

House with Bridge and Stream, Sagunto

Two people.

Sunny Day in Spain, Cabañal

A portrait of an aging woman in a sophisticated black dress wearing a white necklace with her hair piled atop her head, pinned up.

Portrait of Mrs. Godfrey Von Platen

A portrait of an aging gentleman with gray hair and a mustache in a 20th century black suit, leaning to the right.

Portrait of Godfrey Von Platen

A portrait of an aging gentleman with blond hair and a blond mustache staring straight forward; body leans towards the right.

Portrait of a Gentleman

View from within a wooded area.

Bend in the River

Deep blue stream in LR with trees on the left and a field with a pale sky in the background.

Meandering Stream

Self portrait of Mathias Alten.

Self Portrait (Yours Truly)

Two farms and two horses, one white and one brown, in a field.

Farmers and Horses in a Field

Watercolor image of a landscape with blue skies and green trees.

Untitled Landscape

A portrait of a young gentleman in a brown suit and blue tie facing forwards.

Portrait of W. B. Herpolsheimer

Reproduction of original Mathias Alten Sketbook.

Sketches of Carpenters at Work (Detail)

Back Watercolor Image of Foggy Day.

Lake Michigan Dunes (Unfinished)

Front watercolor image "foggy" image of trees and a fountain which is on the right.

A Foggy Day

Reproduction of an original Mathias Alten sketchbook.

Sketched of Winged Female Figure (Detail)

Double sided sketch.

Logging Vignette

Two sided sketch.

Sketched of Winged Female Figure

Double sided sketch.

Study for Landing Vignette

Reproduction of a Mathias Alten sketchbook.

Logging Vignette (Detail)

Reproduction of a watercolor image "foggy" image of trees and a fountain which is on the right.

A Foggy Day

Protrait of man in black suit with blue and yellow tie on green background.

Portrait of William J. Kennedy

A landscape painting of a small wooden bridge over a creek.

Footbridge Over Stream

Oil on canvas painting of a man in uniform, one hand up at his waist, the other holding a rolled piece of paper.

Captain Edward W. Leonard

Large, light yellow colored fields, with green grass, trees and blue sky surrounding them.

Late Summer Fields, Michigan

Image of a young girl in a green dress surrounded by and holding purple flowers.

Camelia of the Delphiniums

Creek in foreground, large white house in background.

Creek

Self-portrait of a man wearing a brown jacket, tie, white shirt and white hat.

Self Portrait

Landscape scene with two men talking near the bottom of the image, there is a large green tree behind them.

Workers in a Field

Children climbing up the side of a green grass covered hill.

Children Climbing a Sand Hill

View from inside woods looking out.

Michigan Summer Woods

Oil on canvas painting of a shallow, almost dry, creek bed with a tree in it.

Autumn Landscape with Creek

White horse pulling a cart on the side of a field.

Harvesting Corn Stalks

Four page calendar, each has a colored photo-lithograph of a painting (one is a reproduction of a Mathias Alten painting) and advertisements for Dickinson Brothers Engravers, Printers, Lithographers, Binders, Steel and Copper Plate Printers from Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Dickinson Brothers Engravers Calendar

Horses near a large sand dune with green grass on top.

Loading Sand

Landscape with Stream

Slightly elevated view of a winding river with a dam.

The Coffer Dam

Landscape with green ground, bare trees, and meandering stream through the center of the image.

Early Spring Landscape with Meandering Stream

Large stack of hay next to a building and a cart.

Farmyard with Haystack and Chickens

Snowy vertical landscape with a frown river at center, snowy banks on either side.

Westside Canal in Winter

Two cows grazing in foreground of landscape image with green grass, pale sky, yellow leaves, and a meandering stream.

Spring Landscape with Meandering Stream and Cattle

Oil landscape painting.

Farmers with Horse Cart

Landscape with a small stream bottom right, trees and corn shocks along the bank.

Autumn Field with Corn Shocks and Stream

Yellow, orange, and green colored trees along the banks of a stream.

Autumn Landscape with Stream

Front of image has green and brown landscaping.

Valley City, Late September

Golden landscape with road moving from the lower right to the middle of the left.

Autumn Landscape

A large team of oxen in the water pulling boats, one boat it white, the other blue and red.

Hauling in the Boat

Multiple people, men and women, surrounding a large grey and red boat near water.

Valencia

Two men and a young child wearing white in a boat.

Mending the Net

Colorful image of men in boats and oxen in the water.

Oxen, Boats and Fishermen

Two oxen pulling a boat onto a shoreline with people at the boat holding the sail.

Unfurling the Sail, Valencia

White building on left, tower in background on right.

Plaza de la Virgen, Valencia

Three oxen, one barely visible along the left edge, with a man standing between them near the water.

Three Oxen and Handler, Valencia

Seascape oil painting.

Pulling Out the Boat

Oil on canvas painting of oxen assisting fisherman by pulling a boat with a large white sail.

Oxen, Boat and Fishermen, Valencia

Man holding a plow behind two oxen.

Farmer Plowing with Team of Oxen

Boats docked along a shoreline with a large tree trunk at the center of the image.

Boats Docked on a Dutch Canal

Oxen and farmers gathering corn using a red cart.

Husking Corn, Lyme

Sail boats in the water with multiple people and horses along the shoreline of the water on the beach.

Rescuing a Boat

Pink and grey sky above water.

Shell Fisher's Return, Scheveningen

Seascape oil painting.

Shell Fisher

Farmer with two oxen is putting something in a bag on the ground.

Farmer and Oxen, Lyme

Man in red jacket standing on the beach next to a wooden cart.

Clam Digger, Scheveningen

Two horses with large carts behind them.

Clam Fishers and Horse Carts, Scheveningen

Cows along a stream with a partial fence.

An Unruly Wind

Two horses attached to a cart with two men pulling a tree into the cart.

Loading the Tree

Four horses getting ready to pull a large rock that a farmer is strapping up.

Hauling the Boulder

One cow lying down and a calf standing under a tree blooming with pink flowers.

Cows under Flowering Tree

Lunette mural of multiple women, some nude, some clothed.

The Sources of Wealth

Lunette mural includes two men, four women, and an angel like child floating above the rest.

The Uses of Wealth

Yellow and purple sunset behind horse and wagon near bare trees.

Horse Drawn Wagon on a Rural Road with Sunset

Pink and White Roses, Portland

Leafless trees on a small hill near a river with buildings in the background.

Looking North along the Grand from Lower Island

Portrait of a woman sitting in a chair.

Portrait of Lucinda (Mrs. John H.) Haak

Landscape scene with six pine trees in the foreground, a village or farm community in the distance, and a white capped mountain further back.

Mount Hood, Oregon

Four cows walking on a path away from the viewer.

Homeward

Side of a mountains brushed red with the setting sun, reflecting in water below.

Autumn Reflections at Dusk

Silhouette of horses in a work field with a yellow sunset under a gray, overcast sky in the background.

Plowing at Sunset

Dark green grass and trees with a cow.

Approaching Storm

Two horses pulling a cart against the backdrop of a yellow, cloudy sky.

Gathering Pumpkins at Sunset

Overcast sky with tall trees with colored leaves in foreground.

Michigan Autumn Landscape

A few bare trees, a few with leaves against a blue sky with white clouds.

Spring

View of horses pulling a green cart along a river.

View of the Gas Works from Lower Island on the Grand

Leafless trees in foreground, river behind and bright sunset in background.

The Grand River

Agricultural scene featuring farmers and horses working in a field at dusk/dawn (pink sky).

The Slush Scraper

Gathering in a clearing in the woods with picnic tables.

Picnic at Macatawa

Dark pond surrounded by trees with browning leaves and a pale sky.

Autumn Pond

Dark image of a large tree, mostly dark greens and greys.

Moonlight, Lyme, Connecticut

Two boys in a dirt road, one has a cart of hay, the other has a flock of sheep.

Landscape with Figures and Sheep

Dark background and table with white and pink roses.

Roses on Tabletop

Cavalier (man in black with hat) with a woman in a yellow dress and pink hat under tall trees.

Cavalier and Lady with Parasol on Path

Purple and white irises against a dark black and brown background.

Irises

Little boy dressed in all black with a white bag slung over his shoulder sits on a crate.

Shoeshine Boy

Large baskets full of fruit.

Vegetable Market, Paris

Sketch of a man in a 17th century cavalier costume.

The Cavalier

Reproduction of an original sketch of a man in a 17th century cavalier costume.

The Cavalier

Reproduction of original watercolor painting.

Rue Cortot, Paris

Older man, crouched, sitting on a very low stool.

French Peasant Man in an Interior, Etaples

Four painted panels with two farm scenes and two marine scenes.

French Studies

Image of an older woman wearing black with a white cap, sitting in a chair knitting.

French Peasant Woman Knitting in an Interior, Etaples

The various residences along the cobblestoned Rue Cortot in Montmatre was the home of many famous artists through the years.

Rue Cortot, Paris

Watercolor image of three figures on a waterfront.

Fisher Folks, Brittany, France

Brown/tan landscape with a small body of water near the center, pale sky.

A Bayou at North Park

Oval image and frame.

Canal Scene, Middle Eastern City

Oil painting of a boy reaching over a tall brick wall for apples while a dog stands at his feet.

The Apple Thief

Two sided sketch.

Sketches of Classical Figures

Pencil sketching on paper double sided.

Study for Architectural Frieze

Double sided sketch.

Study of Female Forms

Pencil sketching on paper double sided.

Study for Architectural Frieze [Duplicate]

Double sided sketch.

The Spirit of Time

Woman on a cross holding an orb of light above her head

The Spirit of Time

Reproduction of sketchbook from Mathias Alten.

The Spirit of Time

View of a boat on the beach surrounded by men and oxen, blue sky, and sail boat in the background.

On the Beach, Valencia (unfinished)

Two sided sketch.

Sketches of Classical Figures

Double sided sketch.

Study of Female Forms