Maine’s Portland Museum of Art is currently hosting the exhibition Winslow Homer’s Civil War in conjunction with the Maine Civil War Trail’s statewide series of special displays commemorating the 150th anniversary of the conflict. The exhibition features 29 wood engravings and other prints drawn from the museum’s permanent collection.
Homer, one of the most celebrated American artists of all time, first gained national recognition for images of the Civil War that he produced for the magazine Harper’s Weekly. An artist-correspondent amidst Union troops, Homer had a first-hand view of the war, which he translated into unconventional interpretations of the struggle. Rather than illustrating battle scenes exalting the men, Homer humanized the event, creating scenes of day-to-day life in a soldier camp and the impact of the war on women and the home front.
Winslow Homer’s Civil War will be on view at the Portland Museum of Art through December 8, 2013.
