Life in Camp, Part 1: Hard Tack

Winslow Homer|Louis Prang & Co.

1864 · Color lithograph · Drawings and Prints

Life in Camp, Part 1: Hard Tack — Winslow Homer|Louis Prang & Co.

In 1864 Homer designed two series of lithographed collectors’ cards titled Life in Camp for the Boston publisher Louis Prang & Co. Unlike his serious war-time images for Harper’s Weekly, the artist felt free to inject humor into these miniature comments on army life which include images of soldiers resting, eating and reacting to army life. Here, a Union soldier reacts to hard tack, a hated food staple that provided little more than calories. By 1864 the war was entering its final months and formerly sacrosanct subjects could be approached more lightly.

Artist
Winslow Homer|Louis Prang & Co.
Date
1864
Medium
Color lithograph
Department
Drawings and Prints
Credit line
The Jefferson Burdick Collection, Gift of Jefferson Burdick, 1947