Our Jolly Cook
1863
About this artwork
This lithograph is part of the 'Campaign Sketches' series depicting scenes from the American Civil War, published by L. Prang & Co. in Boston. It captures a moment of camp life involving a man dancing before an audience of Union soldiers.
Did you know?
Winslow Homer worked as a staff illustrator for Harper's Weekly during the American Civil War, and his 'Campaign Sketches' reflect his observations of soldiers' daily lives. This particular image depicts a common trope of the time, highlighting the complex and often reductive portrayals of African Americans in 19th-century popular media and military life. These lithographs were widely distributed and helped shape Northern public perception of the war effort and its participants.
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Our Jolly Cook
Winslow Homer, 1863
