Hassam's summer sojourns on the Isles of Shoals, ten miles east of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, were among the most fruitful of his long career, inspiring almost ten percent of his works. This painting in oil on canvas is a particularly fine example. It presents a broad view of a tidal pool—rendered with great chromatic variety and inventiveness—embraced by rocks and punctuated by spray; distant islands appear on the horizon.
