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An October Day

Winslow Homer American
1889
Not on view
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.
Homer’s many images of hunting highlight the harsh realities of the sport and foreground the moments between life and death. Here, a colorful autumn landscape provides a stunning setting for the brutal practice of hounding deer. Chased into the water by the dog visible on the right horizon, the buck will likely be captured and killed by the hunter in the nearby boat at left. As the prey attempts to outswim his predator, he disrupts the placid surface of the lake. Homer presents this moment of imminent demise from an ambiguous point above the water as the deer gazes in our direction.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: An October Day
  • Artist: Winslow Homer (American, Boston, Massachusetts 1836–1910 Prouts Neck, Maine)
  • Date: 1889
  • Culture: American
  • Medium: Watercolor and graphite on wove paper
  • Dimensions: 14 1/16 x 19 3/4 in. (35.7 x 50.2 cm)
    Framed: 22 1/2 x 28 3/8 in. (57.2 x 72.1 cm)
  • Credit Line: Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Mass. (1955.770)
  • Rights and Reproduction: Image courtesy Clark Art Institute, clarkart.edu
  • Curatorial Department: The American Wing