Watercolors

Fish and Butterflies, 1900

Homer began making watercolors professionally in 1873, prompted by the medium’s rising popularity. His works from that decade are often redolent of romance, but they counter easy sentimentality with their summary technique and a lack of clear narrative. During his stay in England (1881–82), Homer made many more watercolors than oils, winning critical and commercial success with them. Later in life, he painted watercolors while on his frequent travels, often using startling perspectives or color schemes that reflect both popular illustration and Japanese aesthetics at the same time as they reveal his increasingly unconventional way of responding to the world. Between 1873 and 1905 Homer made nearly seven hundred watercolors, transforming the medium and his artistic achievement as a whole. “You will see,” he said, “in the future I will live by my watercolors.”

Clark purchased his first two Homer watercolors in 1917 and continued acquiring them into the 1950s, assembling an impressive collection of Homer’s work in the medium.