Snap-the-Whip

The influential print Snap-the-Whip by Lagarde; Winslow Homer is a defining example of American illustration from the post-Civil War era. Created in 1873, this piece utilizes the popular medium of wood engraving on newsprint, demonstrating the wide reach of visual art through mass media during this period.

The subject captures a group of school-aged boys engaged in the lively, kinetic game of snap-the-whip, a familiar and often idealized motif in Homer’s graphic work. Homer, recognized for his documentation of daily life, particularly focused on genre subjects, romanticizing the perceived innocence and vitality of rural youth. During the time period spanning 1851 to 1875, such depictions offered a reflective counterbalance to the rapid industrialization and the difficulties of national reconstruction, emphasizing continuity and tradition within American culture.

As an exemplary piece of nineteenth-century American prints designed for wide dissemination, the work highlights the specific collaboration inherent in the printmaking process. Homer typically provided the original drawing, which Lagarde, the skilled engraver, translated onto the woodblock for mass production in periodicals. This technical approach allowed the artist’s vision to circulate broadly, shaping the visual understanding of contemporary American life. The composition successfully renders movement, texture, and detail, overcoming the inherent coarseness of newsprint. Today, due to the age and classification of the image, high-quality reproductions are frequently available in the public domain for research and study. This historically significant wood engraving remains a vital record of this transitional era and is held in the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art.