Winslow Homer
Every piece of art has the potential to tell a story and we will examine some artwork in order to obtain information about life in the Caribbean. The next activity will require students to explore paintings produced by a famous American artist, Winslow Homer (1836-1910) who was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Much of his time was spent producing oil paintings even though he is known more for his success using the medium of watercolor.
Winslow Homer’s Watercolors
(1986) contains representation of paintings that were created during Homer’s many vacations traveling across New England, Canada, the Caribbean and Florida. The National Gallery of Art has produced a video recording entitled
Winslow Homer, the nature of the artist
(1986). Students will use this video to explore Homer’s paintings in watercolors and oil and tell stories about life in the Bahamas, Bermuda, and Cuba. If the video is unavailable, then a possible alternative is to secure about six or seven copies of
Winslow Homer Watercolors
by Helen A. Cooper from the public library. This way, students will be able to work in groups of three or four as they engage in a visual analysis of selected paintings on the Caribbean. Another option is to borrow slides from the History of Art department at Yale University.
In the 1880s, Homer produced paintings showing Cuba and the Bahamas, in particular Nassau. This was a period when Nassau was becoming a popular tourist spot. This flourishing city had a population of somewhere between ten to twelve thousand people. The suburban areas behind the hills were inhabited mainly by people of African descent which made up seventy-five percent of the population. At this time, many of the Africans who were brought across the Atlantic Ocean were still alive; they and their descendants maintained their customs. European or American tourists walking the narrow streets on the island would definitely get a taste of the Bahamian culture. There were brightly colored clothing, houses painted with every color of the rainbow, and open bazaars.
Just by looking at Homer’s tropical watercolors, we can discuss the rich vegetation, blooming flowers, and a wide variety of tropical fruits. There are also mountains, beaches and busy city streets. Architecture would also be a point of interest as we examine houses ranging anywhere from mansions to houses with aluminum roofs to thatched-roof huts. People’s homes sometimes are indicative of their economic status.
Homer’s painting,
Native Huts,
Nassau,
1885
,
illustrates a blend of both African and European architecture. The use of thatch for the roof is part of the region’s legacy of slavery. Raised construction, clapboard walls and windows with wood shutters indicate the European influence. Students will be prompted to determine whether a community is privileged based on what is depicted in the paintings.
Homer would visit the Caribbean islands every winter. His watercolors are usually not on view because they are fragile to light but they are accessible in books. The scene depicted in
Turtle Pound,
1898 shows two black men, one lighter skinned than the other, in the open ocean lifting a turtle to a partner who will receive it. In the Bahamas, this is a way to earn a living so this gives us a view of life in the Caribbean as students try to understand some of the occupations on the islands. Young turtles caught in the ocean were placed in seawater pens to be fattened before they were sold for human consumption. The painting suggests an intimacy between man and nature (the blue sky).
I might also use this image to lead students into discussing how this picture relates to the racial situation in America. The man in the pound or pen is a reminder of slavery. The black man is imprisoned and the position of his hand reminds us of the stockade. The red on his hand suggests pain. The figure in the pound is left-handed and the shadow of his stubby fingers rhymes with the flippers of the turtle who is trapped. The wings of the bird (probably a seagull) in the cloud, rhymes with the flipper which suggests freedom. There is quite a contrast between the captured turtle and the free bird which could spark a discussion on the blurry lines between emancipation and enslavement. The figure in the foreground shows that he is in command and he has the physical strength to rise above the horizon. He is poised between the emblems of confinement and slavery. The boat in the background on the left signifies that things “are just moving along.” Neither figure is a whole man and Homer identifies with these men as his name is half-submerged in the water on the side of the pound.
My classes have often visited the Yale Center for British Art; therefore, students are already familiar with the process of analyzing and interpreting selected paintings. As they engage in class discussions, they will build on their prior knowledge of connecting art and literature to historical events. In addition, these discussions will foster further development of high-order thinking skills.
Be careful not to divulge too much information about the painting to the students since this might overload them and inhibit
their participation in class discussions.
In order to make meaning of the paintings, students will be asked to either list what they see or tell the class what they see as they look at the painting. As students describe what they see, I will ask whether their peers see the same thing or something else. I will encourage students to reflect on their initial reaction and back up their responses with evidence available in the painting. Some of the possible questions might include, “What makes you say that? How can you tell? What else is happening in the picture?” For elaboration, I will encourage students to give detailed descriptions of what they see as they try to explain what is depicted in the scene. Students will imagine themselves in the scene and tell where they would place themselves or how they would feel if they were a part of the action. By engaging in the questioning strategy, students will draw conclusions based on the visual evidence they gather. Analyzing and discussing these images will also help students to further develop observation skills through comparing and contrasting. To bring closure to the lesson, I will ask students to summarize the ideas that were discussed. Paraphrasing their responses will validate the ideas that were generated.
It is important to remember that there are no right or wrong answers as we discuss paintings in order to make the connection with history and society at large. I think the painting, Th
e Gulf Stream,
1889, is an excellent choice to spark discussion among the students. A half-naked black man with a calculating look on his face appears helpless on the deck of a schooner with broken masts. The sea is rough and there is a pool of sharks in the foreground. This painting is loaded with symbolism. The look on the man’s face might suggest that he is aware of his dire situation but has no desire to change it. The sugarcane, which is rope-like, is a reminder of life on the plantation. The schooner has neither sail nor rudder. Does that mean that the young man has resigned himself to his fate and has no choice but to go wherever life takes him? As he looks out, is he looking back at where he came from? Is he thinking that maybe the shark-infested water is not as bad as slavery? The sun falls on the boat so there is a glimmer of hope as this man tries to survive in the horrific environment. There is blood in the water; were there others in the boat? What do you think happened to them? What evidence is there to support your response? These are some of the questions we will try to answer as the class analyzes and interprets Homer’s painting of the Gulf Stream. You might even want to extend the lesson as the class examines the way shapes repeat themselves in the painting. The shark is aligned with the man in the boat. The mast rhymes with the waves in the background and the waterspout with the shark’s fin and the triangle on the boat. Remember, there is no right or wrong answer but students must support their deductions with evidence shown in the painting.
Many families have stories about surviving the devastating effects of hurricane in the Caribbean.
After the Hurricane,
1899 may be used to continue the dialogue of man’s struggle against nature and his will to survive. The presence of gray clouds becoming clear and waves indicate that the storm has subsided. A young black man lays in a fetal position on the beach. His arm cradles his head and the position of his left hand under his mouth can easily remind one of a baby sucking its thumb. This is a rather admirable yet infantile pose. His arched back suggests he is still alive even though he has collapsed from exhaustion as he tries to reach land. This trapped man has to deal with the predicament of enslavement and subjection to what life has to offer him. The well-built man with brawny muscles is unable to resist nature’s control of his life. A critical take on this painting might invoke sympathy from students in a manner similar to Homer’s whose signature is aligned to the figure. The discussion of slavery continues. The black man is washed ashore on a foreign land and his boat is smashed to pieces. There is much ambiguity; he is knocked down but not dead so he will get up again. Students will be prompted to follow the line from the man’s head to the boat and back (note that his legs are concealed by the remains of the wrecked boat). This outlines a merman, a fascinating, exotic and sensual being.
Sponge Fishing
, 1885 (a misleading title) can be used to generate discussions about transportation in the Bahamas. The schooner
Annie Nassau
is seen in the foreground crowded with dark skinned people who most likely are islanders traveling between the islands. A young woman is seated in the stern and she seems to be gazing at a boy who has come up from the water with what appears to be a shell or sponge. There is another schooner in the background of the painting.
Some of Homer’s other paintings depict his view of everyday life.
Sponge Fishing, Nassau,
1885
will pave the way for students to discuss the Bahamian ways of earning a living. Labor was divided between the men and women. Men labored at sea in the broiling sun. Women cleaned, sorted, and processed the catch. Boats were also used as a means of transportation. In this painting, one can see the view of the wharf from the water. White men, probably tourists or buyers, wearing black hats and blue jackets, observe as black fishermen donning straw hats unload the catch of sponge on the dock. One can almost get a feeling of the busy wharf just by looking at the colors of black, brown, red, blue, and green. The painting also shows gray and white clouds and palm trees. The bright light of the Caribbean was typical of Homer’s watercolors, revealed as large sections of exposed white paper. These paintings were often done rather quickly outdoors and were dried in the hot sun. Discussions of Homer’s paintings with titles such as
The Sponge Diver, The Conch Divers, The Coral Divers
, and
Shark Fishing
can be useful in determining some sources of income in the Bahamian economy.
Homer returned to the Bahamas in 1898 and stayed for two months and painted at least twenty-five watercolors. Many paintings contain subjects similar to his first visit -- young black men in water, coastal scenes, seaside resorts clouds and tropical vegetation. Pages 208-216 of Cooper’s book provides several opportunities for students to discuss what they learn about the Caribbean just by looking at paintings of the bright colors, calming waters, and devastating effects of natural disasters.
Back on his 1885 trip, Homer left Nassau and went to Cuba. At that time, Santiago de Cuba, the second oldest port in Cuba, was famous for exporting agricultural products such as coffee, sugar, tobacco and cotton. Rum and minerals such as cooper and nickel were also exported. Natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes destroyed the area so people traveled from Havana by ships around the coast, or on land by horse. During the five weeks that Homer stayed in Cuba, he produced at least eighteen watercolors and a few drawings. Some such as
Street Corner, Santiago de Cuba,
1885 showed the Spanish architecture with elaborate ironworks, repeated vertical forms, and brightly colored buildings. Students will be able to remark on the warm colors of orange-gold, reds and blues. Could this be part of the African influence on the island?
On Homer’s two visits to Bermuda, a coral island unfamiliar to American tourists, he executed a total of nineteen paintings. The average Bermudan worked as a domestic helper, manual laborer, or farmer; therefore, Homer’s work included fewer local people interacting with nature than his works in the Bahamas. Along with the exotic plants, sea animals, and green landscape, a visitor may encounter animals roaming the islands especially in the rural areas. This is captured in Homer’s
Bermuda Settlers,
1901 (p. 223) showing five wild razorback pigs roaming a cedar grove. I am fond of this painting because I think it truly summarizes the Caribbean experience of nature. There are hills, the sea and deep blue sky, hibiscus, oleander and poinsettia flowers.
Other strategies will be applied as students explore the Internet to examine the works of some Caribbean artists. There is a collection of Haitian, Cuban, and Jamaican art on the website, http://www.galleryofwestindianart.com/. Students may click on the thumbnail images and get a larger version of the paintings shown at the Gallery of West Indian Art in Kingston, Jamaica. One can also find biographical information on the artists. Another website with Caribbean art is http://caribbeanartist.com/. The works of Romeo Downer from Barbados is displayed here. There are paintings of people and places from Downer’s homeland. Others represent island scenes from Jamaica, Trinidad, Dominican Republic, St. Thomas, and St. Lucia. To safeguard against viewing inappropriate sites, I will solicit the Technology teacher’s assistance to create a web page for the sole purpose of viewing Caribbean art. The Technology Center is equipped with at least thirty computers so students will have the choice of working individually or in pairs as they select two or three pieces of art to be analyzed. Students will be given a list of questions that will guide them through the analysis (Lesson One). I am extremely grateful to the Visual Arts teacher who assisted me with this portion of the lesson. We will also visit the school library and the public library to borrow books on Caribbean Literature (see Students Bibliography). As students explore the literature, they will be encouraged to pay attention to the illustrations, which will hopefully give them ideas that will aid in their determining how and what will be illustrated in the stories they will create.