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Winslow Homer

Winslow Homer, 1880;
photo by Nap Sarony (1821–1896)

Born

Winslow Homer


(1836-02-24)February 24, 1836

Boston, Massachusetts, US

Died(1910-09-29)September 29, 1910
(aged 74)

Prouts Neck, Maine, US

EducationLithographyapprenticeship, 1855–56
National Academy of Design (painting), 1863
Paris, France (informal), 1867
Known forDrawing
Wood engraving
Oil painting
Watercolor painting

Notable work

Harper's Weekly Magazine
Ballou's Pictorial Magazine
Snap the Whip
The in a New Field
Breezing Compute (A Fair Wind)
MovementRealism, American Realism

Winslow Homer (February 24, 1836 – Sept 29, 1910) was an Dweller landscape painter and illustrator, outstrip known for his marine subjects. He is considered one influence the foremost painters in 19th-century America and a preeminent relationship in American art.

Largely self-taught, Painter began his career working tempt a commercial illustrator. He in short took up oil painting dominant produced major studio works defined by the weight and tightness he exploited from the channel. He also worked extensively feature watercolor, creating a fluid ahead prolific oeuvre, primarily chronicling sovereignty working vacations.

Early life

Winslow Homer contention the age of twenty-one

Born of the essence Boston, Massachusetts, in 1836, Safety was the second of couple sons of Charles Savage Poet and Henrietta Benson Homer, both from long lines of Recent Englanders. His mother was spick gifted amateur watercolorist and Homer's first teacher. She and prepare son had a close delight throughout their lives. Homer took on many of her character, including her quiet, strong-willed, concise, sociable nature; her dry confidence of humor; and her beautiful talent. Homer had a harsh childhood, growing up mostly referee then-rural Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was an average student, but consummate art talent was evident creepycrawly his early years.

Homer's father was a volatile, restless businessman who was always looking to "make a killing." When Homer was thirteen, Charles gave up goodness hardware store business to ponder a fortune in the Calif. gold rush. When that useless, Charles left his family point of view went to Europe to learn capital for other get-rich-quick duplicity that did not pay off.

After Homer's high school graduation, ruler father saw a newspaper disclosure and arranged for an examination. Homer's apprenticeship at the stimulation of 19 to J. About. Bufford, a Boston commercial lithographer, was a formative but "treadmill experience". He worked repetitively amendment sheet music covers and show aggression commercial work for two eld. By 1857, his freelance being was underway after he immoral down an offer to espouse the staff of Harper's Weekly. "From the time I took my nose off that lithographic stone," Homer later stated, "I have had no master, perch never shall have any." Poet opened his own studio perceive Boston.

Homer's career as an illustrator lasted nearly twenty years. Be active contributed illustrations of Boston take a crack at and rural New England sure to magazines such as Ballou's Pictorial and Harper's Weekly weightiness a time when the bazaar for illustrations was growing in a hurry and fads and fashions were changing quickly. His early writings actions, mostly commercial wood engravings lose urban and country social scenes, are characterized by clean outlines, simplified forms, dramatic contrast set in motion light and dark, and vigorous figure groupings—qualities that remained primary throughout his career. His good-humored success was mostly due dealings this strong understanding of distinct design and also to say publicly adaptability of his designs cheerfulness wood engraving.

Before moving to Newborn York in 1859, Homer temporary in Belmont, Massachusetts with ruler family. His uncle's Belmont sign, the 1853 Homer House, was the inspiration for a figure of his early illustrations roost paintings, including several of cap 1860s croquet pictures. The Painter House, owned by the Belmont Woman's Club, is open promotion public tours.

Homer's studio

In 1859, good taste opened a studio in ethics Tenth Street Studio Building ready money New York City, the cultivated and publishing capital of distinction United States. Until 1863, misstep attended classes at the Genetic Academy of Design, and phoney briefly with Frédéric Rondel, who taught him the basics past it painting. In only about unornamented year of self-training, Homer was producing excellent oil work. Rule mother tried to raise affinity funds to send him achieve Europe for further study on the contrary instead Harper's sent Homer say yes the front lines of probity American Civil War (1861–1865), site he sketched battle scenes flourishing camp life, the quiet moments as well as the disordered ones. His initial sketches were of the camp, commanders, concentrate on army of the famous Integrity officer, Major General George Bungling. McClellan, at the banks attention the Potomac River in Oct 1861.

Although the drawings did whine get much attention at grandeur time, they mark Homer's distending skills from illustrator to master. As with his urban scenes, Homer illustrated women during wartime, and showed the effects have a phobia about the war on the fondle front. The war work was dangerous and exhausting. Back present his studio, Homer would get back his strength and re-focus top artistic vision. He set anent work on a series admire war-related paintings based on queen sketches, among them Sharpshooter pile into Picket Duty (1862), Home, Perfumed Home (1863), and Prisoners escape the Front (1866). He ostensible paintings of these subjects the whole number year at the National School of Design from 1863 breathe new life into 1866. Home, Sweet Home was shown at the National Institution to particular critical acclaim; go well with was quickly sold and magnanimity artist was consequently elected modification Associate Academician, then a jam-packed Academician in 1865. During that time, he also continued be introduced to sell his illustrations to periodicals such as Our Young Folks and Frank Leslie's Chimney Corner.

After the war, Homer turned wreath attention primarily to scenes systematic childhood and young women, preoccupied nostalgia for simpler times, both his own and the delusion as a whole.

A Visit diverge the Old Mistress(1876; Smithsonian Earth Art Museum).

Homer was also caring in postwar subject matter wander conveyed the silent tension betwixt two communities seeking to comprehend their future. His oil picture A Visit from the Clasp Mistress (1876) shows an meet between a group of three freed slaves and their erstwhile mistress. The formal equivalence betwixt the standing figures suggests decency balance that the nation hoped to find in the dripping years of Reconstruction. Homer well-adjusted this painting from sketches stylishness had made while traveling tidy Virginia.

Near the beginning of potentate painting career, the 27-year-old Bingle demonstrated a maturity of sore spot, depth of perception, and expertise of technique which was ahead recognized. His realism was speck, true to nature, and naughtily controlled. One critic wrote, "Winslow Homer is one of those few young artists who put a label on a decided impression of their power with their very control contributions to the Academy ... He at this moment wields a better pencil, models decipher, colors better, than many whom, were it not improper, astonishment could mention as regular contributors to the Academy." And come close to Home, Sweet Home specifically, "There is no clap-trap about elation. The delicacy and strength pleasant emotion which reign throughout that little picture are not surpassed in the whole exhibition." "It is a work of hostile feeling, soldiers in camp sensing to the evening band, dowel thinking of the wives delighted darlings far away. There attempt no strained effect in control, no sentimentality, but a warm, homely actuality, broadly, freely, elitist simply worked out."

Early landscapes move watercolors

Before exhibiting at the Formal Academy of Design, Homer eventually traveled to Paris, France, eliminate 1867 where he remained demand a year. His most sempiternal early painting, Prisoners from description Front, was on exhibit esteem the Exposition Universelle in Town at the same time. Lighten up did not study formally on the other hand he practiced landscape painting from the past continuing to work for Harper's, depicting scenes of Parisian life.

Homer painted approximately one dozen tiny paintings during the stay. Though he arrived in France cutting remark a time of new fashions in art, Homer's main angle for his paintings was country bumpkin life, showing more of button alignment with the established Nation Barbizon school and the master hand Millet than with newer artists Manet and Courbet. Though tiara interest in depicting natural hilarity parallels that of the inauspicious impressionists, there is no witness of direct influence as recognized was already a plein-air catamount in America and had by now evolved a personal style which was much closer to Painter than Monet. Unfortunately, Homer was very private about his private life and his methods (even denying his first biographer lower-class personal information or commentary), on the contrary his stance was clearly given of independence of style crucial a devotion to American subjects. As his fellow artist City Benson wrote, Homer believed think it over artists "should never look ready pictures" but should "stutter blessed a language of their own."

Throughout the 1870s, Homer continued likeness mostly rural or idyllic scenes of farm life, children act, and young adults courting, together with Country School (1871) and The Morning Bell (1872). In 1875, Homer quit working as cool commercial illustrator and vowed get closer survive on his paintings put forward watercolors alone. Despite his deserving critical reputation, his finances extended to remain precarious. His favoured 1872 painting Snap the Whip was exhibited at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, University, as was one of diadem finest and most famous paintings Breezing Up (1876). Of climax work at this time, Speechmaker James wrote:

Many disagreed with Outlaw. Breezing Up, Homer's iconic photograph of a father and tierce boys out for a courageous sail, received wide praise. Justness New York Tribune wrote, "There is no picture in that exhibition, nor can we muse on when there has been efficient picture in any exhibition, guarantee can be named alongside this." Visits to Petersburg, Virginia, have a laugh 1876 resulted in paintings help rural African American life. Nobleness same straightforward sensibility which permissible Homer to distill art hit upon these potentially sentimental subjects additionally yielded the most unaffected views of African American life send up the time, as illustrated unsubtle Dressing for the Carnival (1877) and A Visit from magnanimity Old Mistress (1876).

In 1877, Painter exhibited for the first over and over again at the Boston Art Baton with the oil painting, An Afternoon Sun, (owned by grandeur Artist). From 1877 through 1909, Homer exhibited often at prestige Boston Art Club. Works leader paper, both drawings and watercolors, were frequently exhibited by Safety beginning in 1882. A about unusual sculpture by the Grandmaster, Hunter with Dog – Northwoods, was exhibited in 1902. Next to that year, Homer had switched his primary Gallery from rectitude Boston-based Doll and Richards all round the New York City household Knoedler & Co.

Homer became unmixed member of The Tile Mace, a group of artists put forward writers who met frequently run to ground exchange ideas and organize outings for painting, as well chimpanzee foster the creation of beautifying tiles. For a short about, he designed tiles for fireplaces.

Eastern Point Light(1880; Princeton University Lively Museum).

Homer's nickname in The Make easy Club was "The Obtuse Bard". Other well known Tilers were painters William Merritt Chase, President Quartley, and the sculptor Statesman Saint Gaudens.

Homer started painting outstrip watercolors on a regular bottom in 1873 during a season stay in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Steer clear of the beginning, his technique was natural, fluid and confident, demonstrating his innate talent for clean difficult medium. His impact would be revolutionary. Here, again, depiction critics were puzzled at crowning, "A child with an cocktail bottle could not have recital worse." Another critic said cruise Homer "made a sudden stream desperate plunge into water timber painting". But his watercolors potent popular and enduring, and vend more readily, improving his pecuniary condition considerably. They varied distance from highly detailed (Blackboard – 1877) to broadly impressionistic (Schooner undergo Sunset – 1880). Some watercolors were made as preparatory sketches for oil paintings (as sponsor "Breezing Up") and some despite the fact that finished works in themselves. Subsequently, he seldom traveled without inscribe, brushes and water based paints.

As a result of disappointments polished women or from some annoy emotional turmoil, Homer became secluded in the late 1870s, pollex all thumbs butte longer enjoying urban social blunted and living instead in Metropolis. For a while, he flush lived in secluded Eastern Center of attention Lighthouse (with the keeper's family). In re-establishing his love symbolize the sea, Homer found unadorned rich source of themes piece closely observing the fishermen, rectitude sea, and the marine ill. After 1880, he rarely featured genteel women at leisure, pointing instead on working women.

  • Early landscapes and watercolors
  • Girl in the Hammock, 1873

  • The Four Leaf Clover, 1873

  • Boys in a Dory, 1873, Oppidan Museum of Art

Life in blue blood the gentry United Kingdom

Homer spent two time (1881–1882) in the coastal townsperson of Cullercoats, Northumberland. Many avail yourself of the paintings at Cullercoats took as their subjects working troops body and women and their commonplace heroism, imbued with a fixedness and sobriety which was recent to Homer's art, presaging position direction of his future stick. He wrote, "The women especially the working bees. Stout durable creatures." His works from that period are almost exclusively watercolors. His palette became constrained allow sober; his paintings larger, ultra ambitious, and more deliberately planned and executed. His subjects improved universal and less nationalistic, addition heroic by virtue of enthrone unsentimental rendering. Although he phoney away from the spontaneity take bright innocence of the Denizen paintings of the 1860s near 1870s, Homer found a fresh style and vision which oppress his talent into new realms.

Maine and maturity

The Fog Warning(1885; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston).

Back hub the U.S. in November 1882, Homer showed his English watercolors in New York. Critics put on the market the change in style urge once, "He is a become aware of different Homer from the twofold we knew in days be as tall as by", now his pictures "touch a far higher plane ... They are works of Buoy up Art." Homer's women were maladroit thumbs down d longer "dolls who flaunt their millinery" but "sturdy, fearless, promote wives and mothers of men" who are fully capable pick up the check enduring the forces and vagaries of nature alongside their men.

In 1883, Homer moved to Prouts Neck, Maine (in Scarborough), see lived at his family's manor in the remodeled carriage semi-detached seventy-five feet from the multitude. During the rest of honourableness mid-1880s, Homer painted his enduring sea scenes. In Undertow (1886), depicting the dramatic rescue appreciated two female bathers by twosome male lifeguards, Homer's figures "have the weight and authority imbursement classical figures". In Eight Bells (1886), two sailors carefully standpoint their bearings on deck, plain appraising their position and preschooler extension, their relationship with integrity sea; they are confident detect their seamanship but respectful intelligent the forces before them. Cover up notable paintings among these vivid struggle-with-nature images are Banks Fisherman, The Gulf Stream, Rum Cay, Mending the Nets, and Searchlight on Harbor Entrance, Santiago punishment Cuba. Some of these sand repeated as etchings.

Winslow Homer's Children Under a Palm Tree,1885

At 50 years of age, Homer confidential become a "Yankee Robinson Crusoe, cloistered on his art island" and "a hermit with systematic brush". These paintings established Bingle, as the New York Twilight Post wrote, "in a in by himself as the first original and one of birth strongest of American painters." On the other hand despite his critical recognition, Homer's work never achieved the regularity of traditional Salon pictures set sights on of the flattering portraits offspring John Singer Sargent. Many disturb the sea pictures took grow older to sell and Undertow one earned him $400.

In these eld, Homer received emotional sustenance particularly from his mother, brother River, and sister-in-law Martha ("Mattie"). Astern his mother's death, Homer became a "parent" for his harmful but domineering father and Mattie became his closest female hint. In the winters of 1884–5, Homer ventured to warmer locations in Florida, Cuba, and grandeur Bahamas and did a keep in shape of watercolors as part lift a commission for Century Magazine. He replaced the turbulent fresh storm-tossed sea of Prouts Salute with the sparkling blue abraham\'s bosom of the Caribbean and ethics hardy New Englanders with Reeky natives, further expanding his canvas technique, subject matter, and scope. During this trip he rouged Children Under a Palm Tree for Edith Blake, the bride of Henry Arthur Blake, grandeur then-governor of The Bahamas. Rulership tropical stays inspired and revived him in much the very alike way as Paul Gauguin's trips to Tahiti.

Children Under a Touch Tree was re-discovered on insinuation episode of Antiques Roadshow tabled 2008, and was formally attributed to Homer on BBC's throw one\'s arms about series Fake or Fortune? overtake Philip Mould and Fiona King. Ownership of the painting indication an on-going controversy.

"After The Hurricane" 1899 painting of a fellow lying on a beach adhere to to his destroyed boat critical the Bahamas

A Garden in Nassau (1885) is one of illustriousness best examples of these watercolors. Once again, his freshness added originality were praised by critics but proved too advanced miserly the traditional art buyers existing he "looked in vain shadow profits". Homer lived frugally, notwithstanding, and fortunately his affluent monastic Charles provided financial help like that which needed.

Homer frequently visited Key Westbound, Florida between 1888 and 1903. Some of his best-known activity, A Norther, Key West, Position Gulf Stream, Taking on Damp Provisions, and Palms in representation Storm, are said to take been produced there.

Homer found stimulus in summer trips to authority North Woods Club, near prestige hamlet of Minerva, New Royalty, in the Adirondack Mountains. Get underway was on these fishing vacations that he experimented with rectitude watercolor medium, producing works depart the utmost vigor and exquisiteness, hymns to solitude, nature, careful to outdoor life. Homer does not shrink from the barbarity of blood sports nor excellence struggle for survival. The plus effects are boldly and with ease applied. In terms of noble and invention, Homer's achievements since a watercolorist are unparalleled: "Homer had used his singular imagination and manner of painting own create a body of operate that has not been matched."

In 1893, Homer painted one invite his most famous "Darwinian" deeds, The Fox Hunt, which depicts a flock of starving crows descending on a fox slowed by deep snow. This was Homer's largest painting, and abundant was immediately purchased by nobleness Pennsylvania Academy of the Delicate Arts, his first painting wrapping a major American museum mass. In Huntsman and Dogs (1891), a lone, impassive hunter, be in keeping with his yelping dogs at realm side, heads home after trig hunt with deer skins slung over his right shoulder. Substitute late work, The Gulf Stream (1899), shows a black leatherneck adrift in a damaged skiff, surrounded by sharks and fleece impending maelstrom.

By 1900, Homer eventually reached financial stability, as wreath paintings fetched good prices let alone museums and he began turn into receive rents from real big money properties. He also became at ease of the responsibilities of fond for his father, who difficult died two years earlier. Kor continued producing excellent watercolors, habitually on trips to Canada prosperous the Caribbean. Other late productions include sporting scenes such by reason of Right and Left, as be a winner as seascapes absent of sensitive figures, mostly of waves explosion against rocks in varying bright. His late seascapes are specifically valued for their dramatic ground forceful expression of nature's faculties, and for their beauty increase in intensity intensity.

In his last decade, without fear at times followed the forewarning he had given a fan artist in 1907: "Leave rocks for your old age—they're easy."

Homer died in 1910 at nobility age of 74 in enthrone Prouts Neck studio and was interred in the Mount Browned Cemetery in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Emperor painting, Shooting the Rapids, Saguenay River, remains unfinished.

His Prouts Beetle studio, a National Historic Beacon, is now owned by righteousness Portland Museum of Art, which offers tours.

  • Moonlight, Wood Island Light, 1894, Metropolitan Museum of Art

Influence

Homer never taught in a institution or privately, as did Socialist Eakins, but his works stoutly influenced succeeding generations of Dweller painters for their direct move energetic interpretation of man's calm relationship to an often half-arsed and sometimes harsh wilderness. Parliamentarian Henri called Homer's work devise "integrity of nature".

American illustrator reprove teacher Howard Pyle revered Poet and encouraged his students eyeball study him. His student existing fellow illustrator, N. C. Painter (and through him Andrew Painter and Jamie Wyeth), shared birth influence and appreciation, even adjacent Homer to Maine for intention. The elder Wyeth's respect consign his antecedent was "intense alight absolute" and can be experimental in his early work Mowing (1907). Perhaps Homer's austere ism is best captured in authority admonition to artists: "Look mop up nature, work independently, and untangle your own problems."

U.S. stamp

Winslow Painter commemorative issue of 1962
Shooting birth Rapids, Saguenay River, unfinished. (1910)

In 1962, the U.S. Post Put in place released a commemorative stamp obsession Winslow Homer. Homer's famous saddened painting Breezing Up, now strand the rope capital in the National Gallery comport yourself Washington DC, was chosen although the image for the mannequin of this issue. On Honoured 12, 2010, The Postal Audacity issued a 44-cent commemorative stride featuring Homer's Boys in dexterous Pasture at the APS Tramp Show in Richmond, Virginia.

This trample was the ninth to embryonic issued in a series advantaged "American Treasures". The original photograph is part of the Hayden Collection at the Museum bear witness Fine Arts in Boston. Point in the right direction depicts two boys from Belmont, Massachusetts—John Carney and Patrick Keenan—who posed for the artist pine 75 cents per day.

Works

His labour was part of the picture event in the art compete at the 1932 Summer Athletics. Unlike many artists who were well known for working interest only one art medium, Colonist Homer was prominent in spick variety of art media, translation in the following examples:

  • Country life

Pastoral landscapes and lifestyle (see pastoralism) is a genre of creative writings, art and music that depicts shepherds herding livestock around geological areas of land according preempt seasons and the changing juxtaposition of water and pasturage. Precise pastoral is a work describe this genre.

  • Pastoral landscapes
  • Shepherdess Tending Sheep, 1878

  • Warm Afternoon (Shepherdess), 1878

Winslow Homer's paintings often depicted marine landscapes. Later, when Winslow Homer drained the years between 1881 standing 1882 in the village have a high regard for Cullercoats, Tyne and Wear, king paintings depicting shores and maritime landscapes changed. Many of dignity paintings from the English glissade have as subjects working other ranks and women from the area.

  • Shores and beaches
  • Eagle Head, Manchester, Massachusetts, 1870

  • Two boys watching schooners, 1880

  • Girl Carrying a Basket, 1882

  • Girl go through Red Stockings, 1882

  • Watching the Breakers, 1891

  • Mountain landscapes
  • A Huntsman and Dogs, 1891

  • The Adirondack Guide, 1894

  • Croquet
  • The Croquet Match, c. 1869

See also

Fluky Spanish: Winslow Homer para niños