Thomas Cole
Thomas Cole created four magnificent paintings in his The Voyage of Life series, each depicting a traveler in a boat drifting on the river of life with an angelic companion. This is the first in the series, Childhood. The baby in the boat enjoys calm waters, a radiant sky glowing with the new day, and a lush, welcoming landscape that overflows with abundance. The boat itself is intricately carved and includes a masthead holding out an hourglass. This journey through life is full of promise and the baby reaches out eagerly to what lies ahead.
Thomas Cole founded the Hudson River school of landscape painters in America. He is among the first great landscape painters in America. He was born in England and moved with his family to America when he was 17. His luminous brushwork inspired a generation of new artists ready to explore the richness of America and celebrate its manifest destiny. Cole carefully interwove themes throughout his work, including both patriotic and religious tenets. The complete Voyage of Life series sets the subject amidst Christian ideas of life, death, and resurrection, all set within a new country on the cusp of expansion and possibility. The voyage indeed promises to be an amazing adventure.
- Brad Allen