This small painting is, paradoxically, monumental in scale. In contrast to the lively animation of most of Homer’s paintings at this time, there is brooding stillness here. The figure of the mother seems carved of wood; sails are are up but there is no sign of a breeze to move them.

WAITING FOR DAD (1873)
Oil on Canvas

In the clear, glaring light, forms are isolated, sharply silhouetted against the sky. Like the vessels on the water and the two boats drawn up on shore, the members of this young family face away from one another. They stare off in different directions, alone with their separate thoughts, features obscured from our view. Similar treatment of interrelation among the protagonists in his paintings can be found throughout Homer’s work. The mood is one of uneasiness and anxiety, perhaps even foreboding. The very title of this unsettling picture seems to sound a deliberately ominous note.