“Home in the Woods” is an oil on canvas painting by Thomas Cole that is part of the American Art Collection which was created in 1847. Its dimensions are 52 1⁄2 x 74 1⁄2 in. (133.4 x 189.2) for the frame and 44 3/8 x 66 1/8 in. (112.7 x 168 cm) for the canvas. The painting’s credit line is ‘Gift of Barbara B. Millhouse”. The painting can be found at the Reynolda House Museum of American Art (Cole). The art progresses further to Cole’s prominence of landscape
painting. In the painting, Cole depicts limitless resources of the country’s interior such as the profusion of timber and the extensive network of rivers and lakes. The foreground of the painting depicts the ravages that Cole was talking about. To make the message clearer Cole uses contrast in the area around the cabin, which is shown of trees and littered with the family’s belongings, with pristine mountains in the background. The painting serves as a warning to the viewer of the disappearance of unspoiled places as a result of human encroachment.
The painting is presented in such a way that one is able to create a mental image that captures abundant resources. The presence of a person and settlement in the painting is Cole’s way of expressing concern about the effects of settlement on the land. In the painting, a father returns home to the family cabin in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. In his hands, he carries a fresh catch that will probably serve as the family’s dinner. The settlement has been created by the man’s family who has to clear some bit of the forest. There are chopped down trees and sawn logs in the foreground which confirm Cole’s fears of a man disrupting nature to create room for settlement. Cole is able to reveal so much crisp detail in the painting making it easier for a person who is not privy to the motivation of the painting to understand the message being conveyed. The painting is a revelation of Cole’s stance on the settlement of maiden land in the
country’s interior. It offers support to his essay, “Essay on American Society”
Works Cited
Cole, Thomas. Home In The Woods. Reynolda House Museum of American Art. American Art.
1847. https://www.reynoldahouse.org/collections/object/home-in-the-woods.
