Sea fever

In the aftermath of civil war, one of the great painters of the New World developed a highly expressive and personal language to explore Man's connection with wild Nature, conflict and race

- Mary Miers

WINSLOW HOMER’S bracing coastal and wilderness views of New England challenged the tradition of idealised landscapes that, by the 1860s, had become synonymous with the American dream. From his iridescent watercolours of leaping trout glinting in sunlight reflected from the clean waters of the Adirondacks to monumental seascapes that surge with the power of wind and wave, he expressed an elemental connection to wild Nature with unprecedented realism and vigour. Yet he was also interested in the psychological narrative and deeper undercurrents run through his work. With his focus on Man’s precarious relationship with the environment, together with themes of war and race, Homer’s paintings assume a renewed resonance today.

Largely self taught, he worked tirelessly to perfect his mastery of oils and water-colour and, although great commercial success eluded him, his work was snapped up by American institutions as he became recognised as one of the most original and accomplished painters of his day. In Britain, however, he is relatively little known and there is no painting by him in any public collection.