November 2019 - A Long Look

An image of the painting being described — Winslow Homer (American, 1836 – 1910), Breezing Up (A Fair Wind), 1873-1876, oil on canvas, Gift of the W. L. and May T. Mellon Foundation 1943.13.1

Breezing Up was a huge hit when Homer exhibited it during the American centennial, 1876. Viewers loved the optimism he conveyed in this scene of a trio of boys and their old skipper speeding towards port, one lad looking towards the horizon.

We’ll find out how Homer uses a technique we heard about in the Sargent episode that makes us feel like we’re on board and get a brief introduction to lithography, a popular printing method. And I confess to missing an important symbol!

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SHOW NOTES (TRANSCRIPT)

“A Long Look” theme is “Ascension” by Ron Gelinas youtu.be/jGEdNSNkZoo

Episode theme is “Today’s Special:Jam Tomorrow” by Dr. Turtle.
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Doctor_Turtle/Will_Play_Wonderwall_For_Food/Todays_Special_Jam_Tomorrow

Breezing Up information
https://www.nga.gov/collection/artist-info.1401.html

https://www.nga.gov/collection/art-object-page.30228.html

Winslow Homer information
Wilmerding, John. Winslow Homer. New York: Praeger Publishers, 1972. Print.

American Paintings of the Nineteenth Century, Part 1 (PDF)
https://www.nga.gov/research/publications/pdf-library/american-paintings-of-the-nineteenth-century-part-i.html

American Stories information
https://www.nga.gov/calendar/guided-tours/docent-led-tours/american-stories.html

Lithography tutorial from Minneapolis Institute of Art (YouTube)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHw5_1Hopsc

Painting being described in episode — Louis Maurice Boutet de Monvel (French, 1850 – 1913), Her Appeal to the Dauphin (Joan of Arc series: II), 1906, oil and gold leaf on canvas, Corcoran Collection (William A. Clark Collection) 2015.19.35

Who is this young person kneeling before a crowd of one-percenters? Meet Joan of Arc, one very tough teen. She’s here to convince the exiled French court that she can save France from the British. No wonder they look skeptical!

And just like Sodoma, we get to discover another artist, Louis Maurice Boutet de Monvel. He painted a series of six images about Joan’s life for Senator William A. Clark that formerly hung in the Corcoran Gallery in Washington DC.