LACMA showcases artwork of Winslow Homer
By Daily Bruin Staff
July 1, 2001 9:00 p.m.
 Museum Associates/LACMA Winslow Homer’s painting
“The Cotton Pickers” is arguably the best in this
collection, demonstrating the artist’s technique of character
placement and perspective.
By Mary Williams
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
Although they don’t like to admit it, critics have an
embarrassing habit of being wrong.
Take for example the reviews quoted in the Los Angeles County
Museum of Art’s exhibit “Winslow Homer and the Critics:
Forging a National Art in the 1870s,” where nearly every
painting is accompanied by a quote describing its critical
reception in New York.
The exhibit of Homer’s early works, which are now
cherished by the American public and recognized as vastly important
in the development of American art, provides fascinating insight
into Homer’s progression as an artist.
At a time when European, particularly French, artists held the
spotlight, Homer was at the forefront of a recognizably and purely
American art tradition. Influenced by the rough brushwork of
Impressionist painters, his art was criticized for looking
“unfinished” or “rough,” while at the same
time praised for its distinctly American subjects.
As his career progressed, Homer learned that visible brush
strokes could be forgiven in scenes of American children and rural
life and conversely, that he could paint other subjects without
loss of support from the critics as long as he paid more attention
to detail.
Not everything written about Homer was negative ““ he was
acknowledged as the premier American artist of his time. However,
he was under intense pressure to produce work that was acceptable
to critics who were concerned with the future of the
then-developing identity of American art.
LACMA’s exhibit effectively shows Homer’s struggle
with this task, as he became increasingly concerned with distinctly
American scenes and the effects of color, line and level of finish
on his art and on the entire art world.
Since it is a collection focused on the 1870s, many of the
paintings on exhibit are not widely known, but their interest to
the viewer lies in the changes in style and subject that they
demonstrate.
 Metropolitan Museum of Art The painting "Eagle head,
Manchester, Massachusetts (High Tide)" by Winslow Homer is
currently on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. For
example, an earlier painting in the exhibit, “Carnay la Ville
““ French Farm,” from 1867 (the year after his return
from France) depicts a European scene. Later and more well-known
paintings like 1872’s “Snap the Whip,” which
portrays children playing in front of a one- room schoolhouse, are
distinctly American in their subject matter.
Aside from illustrating the small changes Homer made after
considering the criticism he encountered, the exhibit provides the
viewer with a well-rounded collection from a great
artist. Many of the paintings, famous or not, are striking and
unusual in their choice of perspective and method of
representation.
In “The Cotton Pickers,” from 1876, Homer takes up a
historical subject in his depiction of two slave women picking
cotton. By painting them from a low perspective, the women are
framed by the sky and are given an epic nobility and strength.
This painting is the gem of the collection, showing
Homer’s important use of character positioning and
perspective in creating well-crafted scenes.
Other notable works include “Snap the Whip” and
“Gloucester Harbor,” both of which are beautiful in
their use of color and American themes.
In addition to the nearly 60 paintings in the main exhibit,
there are three side rooms that offer additional information,
context and activities. The best of these is the Context
Room, where paintings from LACMA’s permanent collection
create a historical context for Homer’s work.
The room includes paintings and lithographs from Homer and other
American and European artists. Not only do they effectively
add to the appreciation of Homer’s techniques, but also as a
group they give a good sense of where the art world stood when
Homer was working.
The other two side exhibits are the Reading Room, where visitors
can read the exhibition catalog and learn additional information
about Homer, and the Family room, which allows children to learn
the importance of scale, perspective and character placement in a
painting. Both are interesting side stops along the path of
the exhibition.
All in all, “Winslow Homer and the Critics” is
well-crafted and captivating, even though it points out the
narrow-mindedness of critics who recognize the genius of an artist
but are frustrated by his results.
ART: “Winslow Homer and the Critics:
Forging a National Art in the 1870s” is at the Los Angeles
County Museum of Art until Sept. 9. Tickets are dated and
timed, and allow access to all galleries and exhibitions. On
weekdays, admission is $8 for students and $12 for adults; on
weekends it is $12 for students and $15 for adults. Tickets can be
purchased at the LACMA box office or by calling (877) 522-6225.
