On the Wharf

Keith McDaniel, On the Wharf, 1977, acrylic on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation, 1985.30.43
Copied Keith McDaniel, On the Wharf, 1977, acrylic on canvas, 32 x 48 1⁄8 in. (81.3 x 122.3 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation, 1985.30.43

Artwork Details

Title
On the Wharf
Artist
Date
1977
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
32 x 48 1⁄8 in. (81.3 x 122.3 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of the Sara Roby Foundation
Mediums
Mediums Description
acrylic on canvas
Classifications
Keywords
  • Waterscape — wharf
  • Landscape — bird’s eye view
  • Object — other — flag
  • Architecture Exterior — detail — roof
  • Architecture Exterior — detail — chimney
Object Number
1985.30.43
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1985.30.43

Artwork Description

Keith McDaniel was fascinated by the "sparse and unassuming" buildings on the wharf on Nantucket Island, Massachusetts. He treated rooftops, windows, and walls as abstract shapes and painted them from unusual viewpoints. Here, the intersecting lines of the roofs dominate the composition, carrying the eye to the top left where an American flag flutters in the breeze. The delicate brushstrokes in the sky emphasize this sense of sweeping movement, so that the whole painting appears animated by the coastal winds.