Where was Winslow Homer born?

Winslow Homer was an American painter whose work was among the most expressive and powerful paintings of late 19th century American art. He was born on February 24, 1836 in Boston, Massachusetts.

Homer was born into an old New England family. When he was six, the family moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, then a rural village, where he enjoyed a happy country childhood.

In 1859 Homer moved from Boston to New York City to begin a career as a freelance illustrator. The following year he exhibited his first paintings at the National Academy of Design. With the outbreak of the American Civil War, Homer made drawings at the front for Harper’s. Unlike most artist-correspondents, he dealt more often with views of everyday camp life than with scenes of battle.

In 1873 Homer began to work in watercolors.This allowed him to make rapid, fresh observations of nature. Homer moved to Prouts Neck, Maine in 1883( a desolate fishing village on the coast) and the sea became the dominant theme in his work.

The Fox Hunt (1893), Fog Warning(1885), Eight Bells and Undertow(both in 1886), are among many of his masterpieces.

The U.S. Post Office issued a commemorative stamp in 1962 to honor Mr. Homer. The painting Breezing Up (A Fair Wind) was chosen as the image on the stamp.

Winslow Homer died on September 29th 1910 in Prouts Neck, Maine at the age of 74.