Four Boats on Water (Long Island Sound?) (from Sketchbook) 1858 - 1916

Henry Ward Ranger made this graphite sketch titled "Four Boats on Water" at an unknown date. Ranger was a key figure in the development of American Impressionism, a movement that often found artists turning to the landscape as a source of both national and personal identity. The sketch depicts a seemingly tranquil maritime scene, capturing four boats adrift on what's possibly Long Island Sound. Ranger, like many of his contemporaries, was drawn to the visual qualities of the natural world, but these images aren't politically neutral. Landscape imagery has a long and complicated relationship with power and control, with the ‘masterful’ eye dominating the land. Ranger was interested in Tonalism. His subdued palette and the atmospheric haze invites us to consider the emotional weight of the seascape, a space often associated with both freedom and isolation. This sense of isolation, perhaps unintentionally, reminds us of the complex relationship between American identity, the land, and the sea.