Multiple women line a stair case with several figures on the landings. The sea is beyond and the title may refer to waiting for their husbands to return. In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Barnet and his family spent the summers living on the coast of Maine. Moved by his surroundings, Barnet began a series of prints and paintings inspired by New England’s shipping history, painting women who waited patiently for husbands and lovers to return from sea. The subject allowed Barnet to explore solitude, loneliness, and longing. Barnet noted that “Maine with its monumental primordial rocky coastline—its tall pine trees silhouetted against a vast luminous sky and ocean—its deep harbors and ancient piers caught my visual imagination. Added to this is Maine’s history and its many myths which stirred within me a depth of feeling and tension.”

Waiting

Barnet, Will

1975

Artwork Information

  • Title:

    Waiting

  • Artist:

    Barnet, Will

  • Artist Bio:

    American, 1911–2012

  • Date:

    1975

  • Medium:

    Lithograph

  • Dimensions:

    33 3/4 x 33 inches

  • Credit Line:

    Wichita Art Museum, Gift of Lorillard, A Division of Loews Theatres

  • Object Number:

    1976.42.1

  • Display:

    Not Currently on Display

About the Artwork

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Barnet and his family spent the summers living on the coast of Maine. Moved by his surroundings, Barnet began a series of prints and paintings inspired by New England’s shipping history, painting women who waited patiently for husbands and lovers to return from sea. The subject allowed Barnet to explore solitude, loneliness, and longing. Barnet noted that “Maine with its monumental primordial rocky coastline—its tall pine trees silhouetted against a vast luminous sky and ocean—its deep harbors and ancient piers caught my visual imagination. Added to this is Maine’s history and its many myths which stirred within me a depth of feeling and tension.”