We have some exciting news regarding the permanent collection at the Homer Watson House & Gallery! One of our historically significant paintings is currently out for restoration.
There are not too many known examples of Homer’s work that includes human portraits. For one, he was completely in love with the natural environment that he was surrounded by in Doon. As a toddler, he would often be by the window watching leaves or windmills or laundry blow in the breeze. He would happily chant “See it a-go, see it a-go!”[1] There was a time where he also got in trouble for drawing portraits at school, where he frequently made caricatures of his teacher, who thought that the human figure was divine and should not be recreated in art, and also presumably did not appreciate the cartoonish style he was being depicted in.[2] These all could have been factors towards the early development of Homer’s artistic style.
Swollen Creek is one of very few examples of a Homer Watson portrait. It has been in our permanent collection since 2010, after being passed down generation to generation in the Watson family. It was painted by Homer Watson when he was around 15 years old. It depicts Phoebe Watson (Homer’s sister) with her hands on the shoulder of their friend and neighbour, Ed Chart. Not only is it a rare example of portrait work from Homer, but he also created this extremely early in his career as an artist, very likely with little to no artistic training.
We believe that this painting is currently over 150 years old. Oil paintings are very susceptible to cracking over time and this is typically just a sign of their age.[3] Swollen Creek is suffering from these “age cracks” and some other minor damage conducive to its age. Last year the staff at Homer Watson House & Gallery began to look into the possibility and cost of restoring this piece. Beyond needing repairs for aesthetic purposes, it is important to restore pieces like this so the cracks stop forming, and we do not lose any of the painting itself. This way, we can ensure that many generations to come can appreciate and learn from the work of Homer Watson.
We were lucky enough to secure funding through the Good Foundation and will be able to give this piece the attention it requires and deserves. In the future we hope to be able to restore more of the pieces in the permanent collection. The preservation of Homer’s work is a major part of our mission and mandate. We plan to launch fundraising campaigns to be able to support this mission, as well as secure more grant funding. Stay tuned for how you can support us in this endeavor, and for updates on how the restoration of Swollen Creek is going!
