| The Veteran in a New Field | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Winslow Homer |
| Year | 1865 |
| Medium | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 61.3 cm × 96.8 cm (24.1 in × 38.1 in) |
| Location | Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City |
| Accession | 67.187.131 |
The Veteran in a New Field is an oil-on-canvas painting by the 19th-century American artist Winslow Homer.[1] It is set in the aftermath of the American Civil War and is often interpreted as an emblem of postwar American society. The painting depicts a farmer harvesting wheat in a field with a scythe. The farmer in the painting is identified as a former Union soldier from his discarded jacket and canteen in the right foreground of the painting.[2] This painting was one of several that Homer did on the American Civil War, including his previous works Home, Sweet Home and Prisoners from the Front.[3] The Veteran in a New Field is a transitional painting in Homer's body of work. It comments on the postwar return of soldiers to daily life and the history of death that they bring along with them. It uses biblical themes to comment on war and nature, while also alluding to stories from classical history.
Homer finished the painting in 1865, the concluding year of the American Civil War.[1] The painting was donated by Adelaide Milton de Groot to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains today.[2]
- ^ a b Weinberg, H. Barbara (October 2004). "Winslow Homer (1836–1910)". The Met Museum. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
- ^ a b "The Veteran in a New Field". The MET Museum. Retrieved 2023-07-01.
- ^ Cikovsky, Jr., Nicolai (1995). Winslow Homer (1st ed.). Washington, DC, United States of America: Yale University Press. pp. 24–26. ISBN 978-0300065558.