Whaler off the Vineyard--Outward Bound
William Bradford
1859
Medium
Painting
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Smithsonian American Art Museum, Museum purchase
Accession Number
1978.72
Tags
sailing shipMartha's VineyardfishingboatAtlantic Ocean
About this artwork
William Bradford is best known for his paintings of the Arctic, but his early work focused on the ships of New England. He grew up near New Bedford, Massachusetts, which was home to a successful whaling industry. In this image, he painted a large whaling ship with a smaller schooner sailing in the foreground, and the cliffs of Gay Head, Martha's Vineyard, in the background. This area was the standard route for whalers entering and leaving the port of New Bedford. Bradford emphasized the smallest...