Artwork Page for Fire-Works on the Night of the Fourth of July

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Fire-Works on the Night of the Fourth of July

1868

Winslow Homer

(American, 1836–1910)
Culture
America
Medium
wood engraving
Credit Line
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1942.1286
Catalogue raisonné
Foster 86
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

Winslow Homer focuses on the reaction of the spectators watching a New York City Fourth of July fireworks display instead of the pyrotechnics themselves. In the far distance, viewers seem to be looking upward. But in the foreground, a firework collides with a gentleman’s top hat causing visible dismay to the people nearby.
A horizontally oriented wood engraving in fine black ink lines depicts a dense crowd of people with light skin tones at night. In the foreground, figures in top hats and bonnets gaze upward with open-mouthed expressions. The crowd recedes into a sea of heads toward a distant stone wall and trees. Thin lines and dots represent fireworks in the dark sky. Below, the text: "FIRE-WORKS ON THE NIGHT OF THE FOURTH OF JULY."

Fire-Works on the Night of the Fourth of July

1868

Winslow Homer

(American, 1836–1910)
America

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