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The Outlook, Maine Coast

A work made of transparent watercolor, with traces of opaque watercolor, rewetting, blotting, spatter and traces of scraping, over graphite, on moderately thick, slightly textured, ivory wove paper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of transparent watercolor, with traces of opaque watercolor, rewetting, blotting, spatter and traces of scraping, over graphite, on moderately thick, slightly textured, ivory wove paper.

Date:

1894

Artist:

Winslow Homer
American, 1836-1910

About this artwork

The Outlook, Maine Coast depicts two young women bracing themselves against the wind on a high overlook at Prout’s Neck, Maine. Rather than focusing on what the women are watching, Homer chose to explore the act of looking. Homer, a keen and thoughtful observer himself, was fascinated with the experience of watching. In this watercolor, he associated visual observation with physical sensations: the feeling of strong breezes, moisture in the air, and the chill of an overcast day. Because it allowed Homer to work outdoors quickly, watercolor was the perfect medium to make these atmospheric effects tangible and immediate. In The Outlook, Maine Coast, Homer was especially successful in creating the sense of moving air. The low vantage point also contributes to the emphasis on the windy sky of gray and pink clouds.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Winslow Homer

Title

The Outlook, Maine Coast

Place

United States (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1894

Medium

Transparent watercolor, with traces of opaque watercolor, rewetting, blotting, spatter and traces of scraping, over graphite, on moderately thick, slightly textured, ivory wove paper

Inscriptions

Signed recto, lower right, in brush and black watercolor: "Homer"; in brush and blue watercolor: "'94" Inscribed verso, center, in graphite: "oxx.-//Study for Portrait Group.//M.K. 1020" [underlined]; upper center, in blue pencil: "Oct 26 1896"; upper center, in graphite: "10" [in a square]

Dimensions

35.4 × 50.5 cm (13 15/16 × 19 15/16 in.)

Credit Line

Mr. and Mrs. Martin A. Ryerson Collection

Reference Number

1933.1246

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/16812/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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