Boat on Sea

Edward Mitchell Bannister, Boat on Sea, n.d., oil on canvas, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of J. Wesley Johnson, 1983.95.89
Copied Edward Mitchell Bannister, Boat on Sea, n.d., oil on canvas, 5 1⁄8 x 8 in. (12.9 x 20.4 cm.), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of J. Wesley Johnson, 1983.95.89
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Artwork Details

Title
Boat on Sea
Artist
Date
n.d.
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
5 1⁄8 x 8 in. (12.9 x 20.4 cm.)
Credit Line
Gift of J. Wesley Johnson
Mediums
Mediums Description
oil on canvas
Classifications
Subjects
  • Waterscape — boat
  • Landscape — weather — cloud
  • Landscape — coast
  • Architecture — boat — sailboat
  • Landscape — time — sunset
  • Landscape — time — evening
Object Number
1983.95.89
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1983.95.89

Artwork Description

The sea was a favorite subject for Edward Mitchell Bannister, who had worked as a cook on a trading ship. In this peaceful view of Rhode Island’s Narragansett Bay, a popular subject for nineteenth-century American artists, he focused attention on the brilliant coastal light. Bannister was a deeply religious man who shared with many Americans of his time a belief that nature was an expression of God’s presence. In this scene the radiant light illuminates the bay to suggest a divine blessing. (Narratives of African American Art and Identity: The David C. Driskell Collection, 1998)