Charcoal-gray clouds fill most of the sky over a turquoise-blue body of water in this horizontal watercolor painting. The gray clouds on the left become more blue as they move to the right. The water is framed by low hills sloping down from both sides, which are painted in cinnamon and dark brown with touches of forest green and topped with a few slender, windblown trees. Several black rocks form a curve along the lower right side of a cove directly in front of us. Loose strokes of brown, tan, and pale blue fill the lower right corner below them. On the horizon, at the center of the composition, is a dark gray finger of land with a tiny steamship drifting by, smoke rising from its two smokestacks. The artist signed and dated the lower left, “Homer 1901.”

The Coming Storm

Winslow Homer

Charcoal-gray clouds fill most of the sky over a turquoise-blue body of water in this horizontal watercolor painting. The gray clouds on the left become more blue as they move to the right. The water is framed by low hills sloping down from both sides, which are painted in cinnamon and dark brown with touches of forest green and topped with a few slender, windblown trees. Several black rocks form a curve along the lower right side of a cove directly in front of us. Loose strokes of brown, tan, and pale blue fill the lower right corner below them. On the horizon, at the center of the composition, is a dark gray finger of land with a tiny steamship drifting by, smoke rising from its two smokestacks. The artist signed and dated the lower left, “Homer 1901.”

Colors in this work

Details
Artist
Winslow Homer
Date
1901
Medium
watercolor over graphite on wove paper
Dimensions
overall: 36.9 x 53.5 cm (14 1/2 x 21 1/16 in.)
Department
CG-W
Holding institution
National Gallery of Art
Palette

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Image provider
national-gallery-of-art
License
CC0-1.0
Credit
Gift of Ruth K. Henschel in memory of her husband, Charles R. Henschel

Art Genome Taxonomy

8 tags

Subject Matter

  • Waterscapes Both · 99%

    The image is dominated by a broad body of water bordered by low shores, and the catalog describes a turquoise-blue body of water framed by hills and a cove.

  • Atmospheric Landscapes Both · 98%

    Dark, layered clouds occupy most of the sky and create a visibly weather-laden atmosphere; the title and catalog description support the depiction of an approaching storm.

  • Nautical Both · 99%

    A small steamship with smoke rising from its smokestacks is visible on the horizon and is specifically identified in the catalog description.

Visual Qualities

  • Dark Colors Visual · 94%

    The upper sky and much of the shoreline are rendered in charcoal, slate, brown, and muted green passages, producing a predominantly dark palette despite the bright turquoise water.

  • Earth Tones Visual · 91%

    The rocky shores and foreground are composed of brown, tan, muted green, and gray passages associated with an earthy natural palette.

Medium and Techniques

  • Drawing Metadata · 100%

    The National Gallery of Art classifies the work as a drawing.

  • Watercolor Both · 99%

    Watercolor washes are clearly visible, and the catalog identifies the medium as watercolor over graphite.

  • Work on Paper Metadata · 100%

    The catalog identifies the support as wove paper.

Source & rights

Winslow Homer. The Coming Storm. Courtesy National Gallery of Art, Washington.

High-resolution sources

Catalog record ↗ Image source ↗ Image license ↗ Image-use terms ↗ Catalog metadata terms ↗

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