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      Past Exhibition

      In American Waters

      On view May 29, 2021 to October 3, 2021

      Today's hours:

      10 am–5 pm

      Monday

      10 am–5 pm

      Tuesday

      Closed

      Wednesday

      Closed

      Thursday

      10 am–5 pm

      Friday

      10 am–5 pm

      Saturday

      10 am–5 pm

      Sunday

      10 am–5 pm

      Monday

      10 am–5 pm

      Tuesday

      Closed

      Wednesday

      Closed

      Thursday

      10 am–5 pm

      Friday

      10 am–5 pm

      Saturday

      10 am–5 pm

      Sunday

      10 am–5 pm

      For over 200 years, artists have been inspired to capture the beauty, violence, poetry and transformative power of the sea in American life.

      For over 200 years, artists have been inspired to capture the beauty, violence, poetry and transformative power of the sea in American life. Oceans play a key role in American society no matter where we live, and the sea continues to inspire painters today to capture its mystery and power.

      In American Waters reveals that marine painting is so much more than ship portraits. In this exhibition, visitors will also discover the sea as an expansive way to reflect on American culture and environment, learn how coastal and maritime symbols moved inland across the United States, and question what it means to be “in American waters.” Be transported across time and water on the wave of a diverse range of modern and historical artists including Georgia O’Keeffe, Amy Sherald, Kay WalkingStick, Norman Rockwell, Hale Woodruff, Paul Cadmus, Thomas Hart Benton, Jacob Lawrence, Valerie Hegarty, Stuart Davis, and many others.

      Share your impressions of this experience using #InAmericanWaters

      In American Waters: The Sea in American Painting is organized by the Peabody Essex Museum and the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. This project is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov.

      National Endowment for the Arts


      We are grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Ulf B. Heide, Angus and Leslie Littlejohn, Sam and Tracey Byrne, Lee Campbell Jr., Chip and Susan Robie, Tim and Joanie Ingraham, the Salem Marine Society, Fiduciary Trust Company, Mr. and Mrs. Thaddeus R. Gillespie, Howard and Wendy Hodgson, Mr. and Mrs. William J. Kneisel, Mr. and Mrs. Stuart W. Pratt, Abby and Gene Record, Mr. and Mrs. Ernst H. von Metzsch, Connie and Stan Grayson, Mr. and Mrs. Stephen S. Lash, and Amanda Clark MacMullan for their generous support, and to Carolyn and Peter S. Lynch and The Lynch Foundation, Jennifer and Andrew Borggaard, James B. and Mary Lou Hawkes, Kate and Ford O’Neil, and Henry and Callie Brauer for their ongoing exhibition support. We also recognize the generosity of the East India Marine Associates of the Peabody Essex Museum.

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      TOP IMAGE: William Trost Richards. Along the Shore, 1903. Oil on canvas. 39 3/16 × 78 1/2 in. Courtesy Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2009.1. Photography by Steven Watson.

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      Childe Hassam (1859–1935). East Headland, Appledore, Isles of Shoals, 1911. Oil on canvas 30 × 36 in. (76.2 × 91.4 cm). Gift of Peter S. Lynch in memory of Carolyn A. Lynch, 2018. 2018.72.1. © 2018 Peabody Essex Museum.

      Childe Hassam (1859–1935). East Headland, Appledore, Isles of Shoals, 1911. Oil on canvas. 30 × 36 in. (76.2 × 91.4 cm). Gift of Peter S. Lynch in memory of Carolyn A. Lynch, 2018. 2018.72.1. © 2018 Peabody Essex Museum.

      Theresa Bernstein (1890-2002). The Immigrants, 1923. Oil on canvas. 40 x 50 in. (101.6 x 127 cm). Thomas and Karen Buckley Image courtesy of Woodmere Art Museum.

      Theresa Bernstein (1890-2002). The Immigrants, 1923. Oil on canvas. 40 x 50 in. (101.6 x 127 cm). Thomas and Karen Buckley Image courtesy of Woodmere Art Museum.

      James Edward Buttersworth (1817 - 1894). Yacht Racing off Sandy Hook, about 1877. Oil on canvas. 20 1/8 × 36 in. (51.1 × 91.4 cm). Collection of Alan Granby and Janice Hyland.

      James Edward Buttersworth (1817 - 1894). Yacht Racing off Sandy Hook, about 1877. Oil on canvas. 20 1/8 × 36 in. (51.1 × 91.4 cm). Collection of Alan Granby and Janice Hyland.

      John Bertonccini (1872 – 1947) Whaling vessels in the Ice, Herschel Island, about 1894-95 Oil on canvas 18 x 31 in. (45.72 x 78.74 cm) Museum purchase with funds donated by the Maritime Art and History Visiting Committee, 2019 2019.33.1

      John Bertonccini (1872 – 1947) Whaling vessels in the Ice, Herschel Island, about 1894-95 Oil on canvas 18 x 31 in. (45.72 x 78.74 cm) Museum purchase with funds donated by the Maritime Art and History Visiting Committee, 2019 2019.33.1

      William Trost Richards. Along the Shore, 1903. Oil on canvas. 39 3/16 × 78 1/2 in. Courtesy Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2009.1. Photography by Steven Watson.

      William Trost Richards. Along the Shore, 1903. Oil on canvas. 39 3/16 × 78 1/2 in. Courtesy Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, Arkansas, 2009.1. Photography by Steven Watson.

      Edward Moran (1829 - 1901). The Valley in the Sea, 1862. Oil on canvas. 49 ¼ x 73 ¼ x 4 ¼ in. (125.1 x 186.1 x 10.8 cm). Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields, Martha Delzell Memorial. Fund, 70.5, DiscoverNewfields.org.

      Edward Moran (1829 - 1901). The Valley in the Sea, 1862. Oil on canvas. 49 ¼ x 73 ¼ x 4 ¼ in. (125.1 x 186.1 x 10.8 cm). Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields, Martha Delzell Memorial. Fund, 70.5, DiscoverNewfields.org.

      Kay WalkingStick. New Hampshire Coast, 2020. Oil on panel. 40 x 80 in.. Courtesy of the artist. ©Kay WalkingStick. Courtesy of the Artist.. Photography by Rich Schultz

      Kay WalkingStick. New Hampshire Coast, 2020. Oil on panel. 40 x 80 in.. Courtesy of the artist. ©Kay WalkingStick. Courtesy of the Artist.. Photography by Rich Schultz

      Michele Felice Cornè (1752-1845). Ship America on the Grand Banks, about 1800. Oil on canvas. 39 3/4 x 56 inches (100.965 x 142.24 cm). Gift of Mrs. Francis B. Crowninshield, 1953. M8257. © 2014 Peabody Essex Museum.

      Michele Felice Cornè (1752-1845). Ship America on the Grand Banks, about 1800. Oil on canvas. 39 3/4 x 56 inches (100.965 x 142.24 cm). Gift of Mrs. Francis B. Crowninshield, 1953. M8257. © 2014 Peabody Essex Museum.

      As this exhibition vigorously asserts, marine painting is so much more than ship portraits."
      — Dan Finamore, exhibition co-curator

      Curator perspective

      Daniel Finamore, Associate Director - Exhibitions, The Russell W. Knight Curator of Maritime Art and History talks about In American Waters.

      Sea Shanties and the Environment: PEMcast episode 21, Part 2

      In part two of this two-part series, Host Dinah Cardin explores the PEM’s new climate + environment initiative and its two related maritime exhibitions.

      In American Waters book cover

      Exhibition catalogue

      Lavishly illustrated with more than 120 images, In American Waters features fascinating historical paintings alongside works by major modern and contemporary artists.

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