Winslow Homer, Gloucester Harbor 1873

Purpose:

To become familiar with Winslow Homer, a Maine artist;

To look at Homer’s work as a way to inform and inspire your own work;

Which artwork are you analyzing?  Insert a copy of the image below this line of type.

Title: Gloucester Harbor

Medium: Watercolor

Year of creation: 1873

Describe as much as you can about the artwork.  

What is happening?  It looks like there is a family canoeing across the water. There are other sailboats in the background.

How many people and/or animals are in it and what are they doing?  I see three people and a few birds.

Describe any buildings that you see.  I don't see any buildings in this painting.

What time of day is it?  It looks like it's late afternoon probably in the summer.

What colors are used? There is a mix of cool and warm colors. Mostly a redish pink and blue.

 

Point of interest/Composition – 

What attracts your eye first? The first thing that attracts my eye is the people in the canoe.

Where is it located? It looks like it is located somewhere on the coast, possibly in New England.

How does Homer draw your attention to this area?  (color contrasts, lines, location, changes in pattern, etc.) The difference in the pink and blue draws your attention to the painting. The changes in the pattern draw your attention to the painting as well. The water is more calm and there are more lines where as the sky has no lines.

Balance - Is there symmetrical or asymmetrical balance? Explain... It's asymmetrical because there is no symmetry.

Depth/Perspective- 

Is there a horizon line?  There is a horizon line.

What is in the foreground, middleground, and background?  In the foreground there is a canoe with a family in it and some water. In the middleground there is more water and sailboats. In the background there is the coast.

Is the background very deep and far away or is this painting shallow and close up? 

How do you know; describe it.

Mood – 
What are the feelings, emotions and/or mood you get when you look at this painting? The mood is calm yet alert at the same time. The story of the painting is calm, but the colors make it more alert.
How do the colors, lines, brushstrokes, composition, subject matter contribute to the mood? The color makes a calm painting into something more vibrant. The different brush strokes create contrast.

Interpret - Now that you have looked closely at the artwork and have read the title, describe the story of the painting. What do you think Homer was trying to communicate? I think he was trying to communicate that this family was trying to go on a nice canoe trip but then it turned into something more than they thought it would. I think that he used the color that he did to create an un calm feeling.