CoastLines Exhibition Opening Announcement

June 15, 2026
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NEW WORKS ON PAPER EXHIBITION AT THE CLARK ART INSTITUTE EXPLORES NINETEENTH- AND TWENTIETH-CENTURY REPRESENTATION OF LIFE ALONG AMERICAN SHORES

CoastLines: American Prints and Drawings open July 4, 2026

(Williamstown, Massachusetts)—More than a landscape, the coastline is a site of labor, leisure, and national history. As the margin where the United States meets the Atlantic Ocean, the nation’s Eastern coastline has fostered vital encounters where artists, coastal culture, and the natural world converge. CoastLines: American Prints and Drawings draws almost entirely from the Clark’s collection, bringing together a vast range of nineteenth- and twentieth-century representations of life along the shore. The exhibition is on view in the Eugene V. Thaw Gallery for Works on Paper in the Clark’s Manton Research Center from July 4 through September 27, 2026.

Focused on works by American artists depicting the Eastern Coast of the United States and their sojourns across the Atlantic, this exhibition explores the coastline as a site of contact and exchange, the stage for economic and cultural activity, and a terrain rich in American mythology.

complications of American identity. The Eastern seaboard holds a layered national history: from ports that participated in the transatlantic slave trade to the development of the nation’s early economy to the later emergence of leisure tourism and wilderness preservation. American artists along the coast grappled with these tensions, and their artistic experiments at the edge of the Atlantic created a distinctive national style with international influences, while drawing inspiration from both sensational popular media and lofty notions of the sublime.

During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the coastline offered economic opportunity as a site of trade, industry, and communication in the growing young nation. As more people moved to and lived along the shore, communities dependent on the sea developed unique cultures and relationships to the coastline that were shaped by the ocean’s power and unpredictability. Access to the Atlantic Ocean also made the coastline a destination for leisure. Over the last few decades of the nineteenth century, America’s tourism industry grew rapidly, and seaside resorts, recreational fishing, and beaches drew visitors seeking beauty and escape. Consequently, these dual modes of interaction—work and play—coexisted along the shore. American artists, inspired by both the intensity of maritime labor and the sublime landscape, often occupied a space between these two extremes: they settled in artist colonies, traveled widely, and worked enthusiastically.

Winslow Homer (American, 1836–1910) captures the thrilling sportsmanship of fishing through a striking reversal of scale in A Good Pool, Saguenay River (1895). The hooked ouananiche, or landlocked salmon, fills the foreground, while the fishermen and their canoe navigate choppy waters in the distance. The dramatic composition recalls illustrations in popular sporting magazines, emphasizing the thrill and spectacle of the catch.

In the watercolor The Eagle’s Nest (1902), Homer depicts the awe and excitement of two outdoorsmen rushing to glimpse a pair of eagles soaring above their nest. As industrialization transformed the American landscape, city dwellers sought escape in the wilderness. Scenes like this one reflect the growing popularity of amateur naturalist pursuits that arose out of these trends. By the latter half of the nineteenth century, the nature tourism industry had expanded dramatically, often at the expense of both the ecosystems and the Indigenous communities that inhabited waterways.

STORM AND STORY

In 1881, Homer took a trip to Cullercoats on the coast of England’s North Sea, where he witnessed the dramatic search and rescue operation following the shipwreck of the Iron Crown. The heroic efforts of the town’s lifesaving brigade would inspire some of his most successful work over the next decade. After his stay in England, the artist returned to the East Coast of the United States in search of more sea rescues.

Throughout the nineteenth century, American artists often looked to French and British academic painters and critics for inspiration. Academic art instruction in the United States was only beginning to emerge, so many young artists sought training abroad, especially in Paris, where studios and academies provided crucial technical instruction. Meanwhile, the written work of British and French art critics, such as writer and artist John Ruskin (English, 1819–1900), circulated internationally and shaped artistic standards and ideas about the role of art in society.

Few artists or scholars shaped the education of American painters as profoundly as Ruskin. His writings—on drawing technique, on Venice, and on the painter J. M. W. Turner (English, 1775–1851)—were widely read by American artists, including many featured in the exhibition. Ruskin was also a skilled draftsman and painter. His watercolor Sunset over the Mountains (c. 1845) is likely a page from one of his sketchbooks where he took notes while working out a composition.

Portraits of maritime vessels and pictorial inventories of ports were popular subjects in early American art, and in the nineteenth century, ships also often took on a symbolic resonance. Representations of seafaring vessels carried layered meanings: they evoked naval power, technological ingenuity, far-reaching exploration, and growing networks of global commerce. Ships served as cultural, political, and economic intermediaries between Americans, their natural environment, and the global community. While some artists and writers chose shipwreck narratives to illustrate the dramatic conflict between man and sea, others instead employed the rich iconography of maritime culture to symbolize personal journeys or broader narratives of national progress.

In 1930, Rockwell Kent (American, 1882–1971) published N by E, a novel that follows the artist’s 1929 voyage from New York harbor to Greenland. Kent documented his journey with striking illustrations and playful prose, detailing the perils of sailing, as well as his shipwreck and eventual rescue in Greenland. As stories of ambitious adventurers and dangerous voyages surged in popularity, Kent positioned himself as both a seasoned explorer and an innovative artist. His 1930 illustration Close Hauled refers to the position of a boat oriented closely to the wind direction, allowing the vessel to move upwind.

Life Line (1884, probably printed c. 1940) was Homer’s first published etching, translating into ink the artist’s extremely successful 1884 oil painting of the same name. Suspended between storm and raging sea, a rescuer in a device called a breeches buoy clutches a woman as an unseen crew hauls them to the shore. Neither the wrecked ship nor the coastline is visible in Homer’s composition, heightening the sense of drama in the confrontation between human and sea.

Beyond artistic exchange, ships and seafaring images also register the United States’ transatlantic and global encounters. American vessels carried goods, people, and capital across the Atlantic, and seafaring was central to commerce, diplomacy, and imperial ambition. Ships and the routes they traveled gesture toward the economic ambition and political claims that linked the United States to the rest of the world.

All events are free unless otherwise noted. For accessibility questions, call 413 458 0524.

Opening Lecture
Saturday, July 11, 11 am
Manton Research Center auditorium

Exhibition curator Hannah Chew introduces CoastLines: American Prints and Drawings. Surveying the exhibition’s rich selection of etchings, watercolors, wood engravings, and lithographs, Chew traces the dynamic exchange between the nation's eastern coastline and American artists, including Winslow Homer, Rockwell Kent, and Thomas Moran across the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

Sunday, July 12

Come one, come all, and join the spectacular festivities at our annual Community Day! Head into the galleries for free, then bring the artwork to life through hands-on activities, live performances, and special food vendors—all inspired by our summer exhibitions. Don your own ruff based on the fun frills in An Exquisite Eye: Introducing the Aso O. Tavitian Collection; play with tools used for nautical navigation featured in CoastLines: American Prints and Drawings; and enjoy a taste of Italy, home of artist Giorgio Griffa. Keep an (exquisite) eye on this webpage as the full day of programming is announced. From jugglers to live lute music and caricature artists, there is so much more in store.

Refreshments available for purchase. Held rain or shine.

CoastLines Lecture: Homer’s Life Line
Saturday, August 1, 2 pm

Shipwreck was the nightmare of travelers in the 1800s and a theme that haunted artist Winslow Homer. His reputation at the head of the American art world was confirmed by Life Line, an oil painting depicting a dramatic rescue from a foundering ship using the newest lifesaving technology. Kathleen A. Foster, Curator of American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and author of American Watercolor in the Age of Homer and Sargent (2017), discusses how this artwork would inspire Homer’s foray into etching, demonstrating his marketing savvy as well as his personal passion for the subject matter.

August 19: Finding Nemo (2003)
August 26: Master and Commander (2003)

ABOUT THE CLARK

The Clark Art Institute, located in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, is one of a small number of institutions globally that is both an art museum and a center for research, critical discussion, and higher education in the visual arts. Opened in 1955, the Clark houses exceptional European and American paintings and sculpture, extensive collections of master prints and drawings, English silver, and early photography. Acting as convener through its Research and Academic Program, the Clark gathers an international community of scholars to participate in a lively program of conferences, colloquia, and workshops on topics of vital importance to the visual arts. The Clark library, consisting of nearly 300,000 volumes, is one of the nation’s premier art history libraries. The Clark also houses and co-sponsors the Williams College Graduate Program in the History of Art.

The Clark, which has a three-star rating in the Michelin Green Guide, is located at 225 South Street in Williamstown, Massachusetts. Its 140-acre campus includes miles of hiking and walking trails through woodlands and meadows, providing an exceptional experience of art in nature. Galleries are open 10 am to 5 pm Tuesday through Sunday from September through June, and daily in July and August. Admission is free to all from January through March. From April through December, admission is $22 for adults, $20 for seniors (65+), $10 for young adults (18–25) and college students, and free for all visitors under 18. Admission is free year-round for Clark members. Free admission is also available through several programs, including First Sundays Free; a local library pass program; and EBT Card to Culture. For information on these programs and more, visit clarkart.edu or call 413 458 2303.

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