Winslow Homer Civil War Art:
The Inaugural Procession of President
Elect Abraham Lincoln
The illustration at right is a Harper's Weekly Cover
illustration by Winslow Homer. it is the March 16, 1861 edition of Harper's
Weekly. It presents the Inaugural Procession of President Elect Abraham
The illustration features Mr. Lincoln in a carriage in
front of the United States Capitol grounds. Throngs of people can be
seen cheering the newly elected president.
This illustration represents the beginning of the
transition from Winslow Homer the Lithographer to Winslow Homer the
March 16, 1861 - The Inauguration of
President Abraham Lincoln
In this case, Homer was not simply reproducing a
Mathew Brady photograph, but was capturing the event as an eye-witness.
The assignment of capturing the inauguration of the president marked a
large step forward in Homer's career.
It should be realized, however, that the role of an
Illustrator is different than the role of an Artist. The
illustrator was sent out to capture as accurately as possible to
proceedings of the day. The role was not to create or interpret,
but to simply record the event, just as a photojournalist would today.
In the role of Illustrator, however, you can begin to
see many early signs of Winslow Homer the artist. Several style
components that would become trademark Homer can be seen in this
illustration. First, notice the incredible level of detail, and
patience in the image of the capitol in the background. This
reflects his work and background as a lithographer . . . but then notice
the impatient, almost hurried style found in the image of the person in
the lower left side of the crowd. The jacket tone is almost
"scratched" in, as if Homer was rushed to finish the image. This
impatience becomes a trademark characteristic of many of Homer's war
Another key Homer style emerges in this image.
Notice that the bayonets of all the soldiers are almost perfectly
parallel. Every soldier, in every position ends up with his
bayonet in the same attitude. This characteristic can be seen in
almost all of Homer's civil war illustrations. The bayonets are
almost always all perfectly parallel in his work. This pattern
tends to bring them out of the picture, and emphasize them.
Homer's parallel bayonets create an image of cold hard steel. It is
impossible for the viewer to ignore their presence, or their purpose.
Its as if the bayonets become the subject of the image. This
illustration style becomes more pronounced as the war proceeds, and
gives Homer's war illustrations a cold and somber mood. In this
illustration, the war had not yet begun, and the bayonets are not as
pronounced as they will become in future Homer illustrations, but the
style is definitely evident in this image.
A Note to our Readers
We acquired the images above for the
purpose of digitally persevering them on this site for all to enjoy.
With the digital archive complete, we are making the original, 140 year
old illustrations available for purchase. By selling these
original illustrations, we are able to acquire more material to archive
on this site. If you are interested in purchasing one of the
original Harper's Weekly leafs on this page, contact
leafs are available for a price of $250 a piece, and the proceeds will go to continue to expand the
resources on this site.