Representations of childhood, particularly images of school children and farm youths, frequently appear in Winslow Homer's paintings of the 1870s. In the Mowing could be interpreted as one of the most personal of this genre, as it seems based on a memory from the artist's own youth. Homer was the second of three male children. His older brother, Charles, was two when Winslow was born; his younger brother, Arthur was born five years later. The gaps in age between the Homer boys correspond with the ages of the three youths presented in the painting, and it easy to imagine them as the three Homer boys returning home.
Flat Print Dimensions: 14 x 11 inches (includes a 1.25 inch white border)
Canvas Dimensions: 14 7/8 x 10 11/16 x 1.5 inches
Title: In the Mowing
Artist: Homer, Winslow
Artist Bio: American, 1836–1910
Date: 1874
Medium: Oil on canvas
Dimensions: 15 3/4 x 23 inches
Credit Line: Wichita Art Museum, Roland P. Murdock Collection