Winslow Homer was a well-known American artist in the late 19th century. Most of Winslow Homer paintings are about marine life, making him one of the most iconic painters in the American art scene.

Homer was born in 1836 in Boston in Massachusetts. His talent could be credited to his mother, who painted was also a painter. Therefore, he learned about art at an early age. Homer had a relatively happy life growing up. He learned about art informally while he was younger, and it was clear that he had the talent for it.

Homer started honing his art talents in a more organized way when his father arranged an apprenticeship for him when he was 19 years old. He apprenticed for J.H Bufford, who was a lithographer. For two years, he worked as a lithographer. When he ended his career as a lithographer, he turned to illustration and worked as an illustrator for publications in Boston for almost twenty years.

Homer transferred to New York in 1859 and opened his own studio. He took formal art classes at the National Academy of Design, where he learned about painting. After only a year, Homer started creating excellent oil paintings. His artistic career was underway. However, the civil war hindered his career from taking off immediately, as he was called to serve during the American Civil War. Ever the artist, Homer continued to practice on his skills, and he drew battle scenes while in service. This is notably why some Winslow Homer paintings are about the war - scenes depicted quite eloquently.

When Homer went home from the war, his work started to take on a more nostalgic feel. He drew about the “simpler times” and his paintings had an undertone of wistfulness. He started working on landscapes, where he used watercolors. He developed his skills for landscape paintings when he was finally able to go to Paris, France, where he spent a year to learn and create landscape paintings.

Homer usually worked with watercolors, but he also dabbled in oil paintings. As he grew older, his experiences caused his work to gain a certain maturity and mastery. Eventually, he moved to Maine, where he further explored his painting style. The views in Maine gave him enough material and inspiration to paint marine subjects. Perhaps because of this maturity, his seascape paintings were considered among the best of his works.

These days, Winslow Homer paintings are priceless. As one of the icons of American Art, these paintings are definitely valuable and will be a great addition to your art collection.

More about Winslow Homer