Artwork
Taking on Wet Provisions (Schooner Marked Newport, K. W.)
Taking on Wet Provisions (Schooner Marked Newport, K. W.) is a watercolor work on paper by the American Impressionist artist Winslow Homer. It dates from 1903 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
The painting is titled "Taking on Wet Provisions (Schooner Marked Newport, K.
The painting shows a white sailboat on blue water. A small boat is next to the sailboat.
The sailboat has a dark brown deck and a white hull. People are on the boat, and one person is in the small boat.
The painting is titled "Taking on Wet Provisions (Schooner Marked Newport, K. W.)". The artist used watercolor and graphite on paper. You can learn more about artist Winslow Homer (American, 1836–1910).
Overview
Taking on Wet Provisions (Schooner Marked Newport, K. W.) is a marine watercolor painted by the American artist Winslow Homer in December 1903. Executed in watercolor and graphite on off-white wove paper, the work measures 35.2 by 55.2 centimeters. It is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, where it is accessioned under object number 10.228.11 and classified within The American Wing.
Technique & Style
Homer employed a fluid and economical watercolor technique, using visible washes to define the water and quick, loose strokes to delineate the vessel and its crew. The palette is dominated by blues, grays, and white, punctuated by touches of orange and brown. Graphite underdrawing or detailing supports the composition. White highlights on the water suggest gentle movement. The artist signed the work with a monogram in the lower right corner and inscribed the location and date, Key West, Dec 1903, in the lower left.
History & Provenance
Created in Key West in December 1903, the watercolor entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1910 through the Amelia B. Lazarus Fund. Records indicate the work was held by Minic Custom Woodwork in New York until 1983. The museum currently lists the painting as not on view.
Context
Winslow Homer created this watercolor during his winter trips to the Florida Keys, a period in his career marked by intense observation of maritime subjects and the local fishing industry. By 1903, Homer was well established in Prouts Neck, Maine, but traveled south during the colder months, producing rapid, expressive watercolors that contrasted with his more monumental oil paintings of the Atlantic coast. The Key West watercolors focus on the clarity of the tropical light and the specific labor of the region's inhabitants.
Artist & collection
Artist
Winslow Homer (February 24, 1836 – September 29, 1910) was an American landscape painter and illustrator, best known for his marine subjects.
