The Watering Pots

Theodore Robinson

Brooklyn Museum photograph

Caption

Theodore Robinson American, 1852–1896. The Watering Pots, 1890. Oil on canvas, frame: 33 1/2 x 29 11/16 x 4 3/4 in. (85.1 x 75.4 x 12.1 cm) 22 x 18 1/16 in. (55.9 x 45.8 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Museum Collection Fund, 21.47. No known copyright restrictions (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 21.47_SL1.jpg)

Gallery

Not on view

Collection

American Art

Title

The Watering Pots

Date

1890

Geography

Place made: United States

Medium

Oil on canvas

Classification

Painting

Dimensions

frame: 33 1/2 x 29 11/16 x 4 3/4 in. (85.1 x 75.4 x 12.1 cm) 22 x 18 1/16 in. (55.9 x 45.8 cm)

Signatures

Signed lower right: "Th. Robinson / 1890"

Markings

Canvas stencil on reverse, under lining, in oval format with outline: "54 rue N.D. Champs Paris / PAUL FOINET / VAN EYCK / TOILES & COULEURS FINES"

Credit Line

Museum Collection Fund

Accession Number

21.47

Rights

No known copyright restrictions

This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

Frequent Art Questions

  • I love this serene, beautiful outdoor scene by Theodore Robinson! What drew you to this work?

    The way it's painted and how gentle it is in the colors and the woman's expression. Also the fact that I don't know anything about the painter.
    Theodore Robinson is considered one of the first American Impressionists, a movement that began in, and is largely associated with, France. William Merritt Chase and Childe Hassam, two artists whom we have on view on the 5th floor, are also considered American Impressionists.
    The Impressionists were concerned with capturing fleeting moments resulting in often quickly painted works with visible, varying brushstrokes. There is another work by Robinson on that same wall as well as 2 works by Monet, a noted French Impressionist! Robinson even went to France to study with the French Impressionists and became close friends with Monet.
    Loved the Monet paintings! Absolutely beautiful.
    I agree, seeing Monet is always a treat! I especially love the reflection on the water in "The Doge's Palace," the colors are so vibrant.
    Yes! One of my favorites! Was it always here? I feel like I've seen it somewhere else? Do you have any info on it?
    Monet is famous for creating many versions of the "same" painting. Because the Impressionists were interested in light and capturing the effects, he would often sit at the same site for a long period of time, painting different canvases of the same thing at different times of the day to see the changing light effects. There is a painting at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in Manhattan that looks similar to this, yes! I do believe our version has also been on view for some time, so it's possible you've seen it here before as well.
    I probably saw the one at The Met. I am from Brazil so this is my first time here.
    Oh, well, welcome to Brooklyn! Yes, you may have seen the Met's version. Although, I think it is easy to confuse various paintings by Monet because the subject matter, colors, and style can be so similar.
    That's true, thanks!
    Of course!

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