Yachts Racing off Southampton, Long Island by James Buttersworth
With summer growing more and more distant, memories of warmer weather may help some of us through the winter. While beach scenes might come to mind, paintings with sailing and boating subjects may also do the trick. This is where works by artists like James Buttersworth (1817 – 1894) come into play.
The son of renowned British maritime painter Thomas Buttersworth Jr., James Buttersworth received his artistic training from his father before moving to the United States in 1845, establishing a studio in Brooklyn. For much of his career, he bounced back and forth between Britain and the United States to sketch the great yachting and sailing events of the day, as well as prominent clipper ships. However, he also captured typical everyday scenes of life on the water, like the painting Yachts Racing off Southampton, Long Island. Painted around 1880, the present work serves not only as a reminder of summer leisure time but also as an interesting historical document for Long Island’s South Fork. For centuries, the part of Long Island now known as the Hamptons was primarily a cluster of small villages that relied on farming and fishing. Buttersworth’s small painting, however, is a sign of change. Once the railroad reached the end of the South Fork in 1872, well-off residents of New York City were able to make their way out to these tranquil villages with greater ease. This was the beginning of the area’s transformation into a summer getaway destination (for those who can afford it).
Buttersworth shows a group of yachts out on the water off Southampton. Their sails are all taut from the force of a constant wind propelling them forward. The murky blue-green waters of the Atlantic ripple at the boats’ wide, shallow hulls, reflecting very little light due to the overcast sky above. Seabirds are scattered throughout, while the faint outlines of other boats protrude up out of the horizon line in the distance.