Life in Camp, Part 2: The Girl He Left Behind

"Life in Camp, Part 2: The Girl He Left Behind," created by Winslow Homer in 1864, is a significant color lithograph produced during the turbulent era of the American Civil War. This illustrative print, executed mid-way through the conflict, was part of a thematic series examining the national crisis from different perspectives: the soldier’s experience in camp and the quiet suffering of those awaiting news at home. Homer, who had worked extensively as a special artist for Harper's Weekly, utilized the medium of color lithography to distribute emotionally resonant images quickly and widely to a public eager for visual documentation of the war’s impact.

Unlike the battlefield illustrations typical of wartime graphic arts, this work focuses squarely on the experience of women. The implied narrative captures the poignant separation endured by the soldier’s wife, fiancée, or sister, emphasizing the profound domestic cost of the Civil War. Homer’s sensitive depiction highlights the crucial roles women played in maintaining the home front, often overlooked in histories focused solely on military action.

This early work is central to understanding Homer’s development as an American master, demonstrating his mastery of narrative storytelling through accessible prints before his shift toward oil painting. The immediacy of the lithographic process allowed the artist to connect directly with the public sentiment of 1864. This impression is housed in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As a key example of historical graphic arts, prints of this work often circulate in the public domain, cementing its status as an important record of the home front during the mid-19th century conflict.