Approaching Thunder Storm

Martin Johnson Heade was an American painter known for his salt marsh landscapes, seascapes, and depictions of hummingbirds, often depicted with orchids, as well as lotus blossoms and other still lifes. His painting style and subject matter, while derived from the romanticism of the time, are regarded by art historians as a significant departure from those of his peers.

Approaching Thunder Storm is an 1859 painting by American painter Martin Johnson Heade. It was his largest painting to date. The painting is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is praised for its dramatic depiction of the threatening mood of blackening skies and eerily illuminated terrain prior to the storm itself. The painting has been connected to mounting tensions before the Civil War, which were often expressed in terms of natural imagery.