Boys in a Dory
1880
Medium
Painting-Mixed Media
Classification
Painting-Mixed Media
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Sam Rose and Julie Walters
Accession Number
2004.30.2
Tags
Art Historical Context
Winslow Homer's *Boys in a Dory* (1880) captures a poignant moment of youthful adventure and quiet peril on the open water. This mixed-media painting depicts two young boys in a small rowboat, adrift amid gentle waves, their faces etched with determination and a hint of vulnerability. Homer, a master of American Realism, drew from his time on the rugged coast of Maine, where he immersed himself in the rhythms of sea and sky after the Civil War. Painted during Homer's pivotal shift toward watercolor and mixed media, the work showcases his innovative techniques: translucent layers that evoke th...
About the Artist
Winslow Homer · 1836–1910
Winslow Homer (1836-1910) was one of America's greatest painters and a preeminent figure in 19th-century American art. Largely self-taught, Homer began his career as a commercial illustrator and Civil War correspondent for Harper's Weekly before becoming renowned for his powerful marine subjects and landscape paintings. His mastery of both oil and watercolor, combined with his uncompromising reali...