Youth is the second in a series of allegorical oil-on-canvas paintings by American artist Thomas Cole, entitled The Voyage of Life, which represent man's journey through life. In the painting, an enthusiastic young man takes the tiller of the boat, leaving the angel who previously guided it on the shore. He glides through a serene, verdant landscape, with lofty trees and towering mountains. In the distance, a castle hovers in the sky, a white and shimmering beacon representing the ambitions and dreams of man. This painting, along with the other three in the series, was painted in 1842 and is held by the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.Painting credit: Thomas Cole