Expulsion of Negroes and Abolitionists from Tremont Temple, Boston, Massachusetts, on December 3, 1860 is a striking wood engraving created by Winslow Homer in 1860. This powerful image captures a volatile moment in American history, documenting the violent disruption of an abolitionist meeting just weeks before South Carolina’s secession ignited the Civil War. As a young illustrator, Homer employed the labor-intensive process of wood engraving to translate immediate news and political tension into readily reproducible prints for mass consumption.
The subject illustrates the breakdown of civil order when a group attempting to celebrate the anniversary of John Brown’s execution was attacked by anti-abolitionist protestors. Homer’s composition is charged with dynamic energy, utilizing contrasting light and shadow typical of the medium to emphasize the physical struggle and chaos within the crowded Boston structure. Though known internationally today for his later oil paintings, Homer’s early career defined his ability to capture the complex social and cultural dynamics of the United States through illustrative prints.
Classified as a Print, this historical work serves as a crucial example of visual journalism from the period. The original impression of the wood engraving is maintained in the extensive collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, providing historians and scholars access to this pivotal document. Given its age and status as an important record of 19th-century American life, this print is frequently studied and reproduced through public domain archives.
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