The Young Fisherman
Henry Inman
ca. 1829 · Oil on wood · The American Wing
Born in Utica, New York, Inman began studying art as a child. Although he was a prolific portrait painter, he is also credited as being the first American-born artist to have successfully attempted genre painting. "The Young Fisherman" is his earliest important genre painting, and was made to serve as the basis for an engraving. Relying to some extent on romanticized French images of peasants, Inman focuses on the innocence of childhood as the healthy boy plucks an insect for bait. The youth and promise of the boy are echoed by the lush virgin landscape in the background.
- Artist
- Henry Inman
- Date
- ca. 1829
- Medium
- Oil on wood
- Culture
- American
- Department
- The American Wing
- Credit line
- Gift of Samuel P. Avery, 1895
