Haymaking

Winslow Homer's sketch captures a farm worker during harvest, rendered in pen and ink over graphite on tan paper. The figure wears a wide-brimmed straw hat and loose shirt, rake angled across the composition as he pauses in his labor. Homer's economical line work and attention to working-class subjects reflect his documentary approach to American life during the Civil War era. This drawing demonstrates the observational technique that would define his later illustrations for *Harper's Weekly*, where he recorded rural and military scenes with direct, unflinching realism.