Winslow Homer

The Gulf Stream, painted in 1899, shows a Black sailor stranded in a damaged boat surrounded by rough water and sharks. The painting is one of Homer's starkest images of danger, isolation, and survival at sea.

Yes, Homer made Civil War scenes and illustrations before becoming famous for oils and watercolors. His early war subjects helped establish his reputation in the 1860s.

Homer used watercolor for direct, observational scenes of coastlines, weather, fishing, and travel. His watercolor work from places such as Maine, the Adirondacks, and the Bahamas helped raise the medium's status in American art.

Many of Homer's late seascapes are tied to Prouts Neck, Maine, where he lived and worked. That coastal setting shaped paintings such as Northeaster and The Gulf Stream.