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Customs House, Santiago de Cuba
Winslow Homer American
Not on view
As the title indicates, this watercolor represents the aduana (customs house), where the Spanish colonial government collected tariffs on imported goods. One of Homer’s most accomplished architectural studies from his 1885 trip to Cuba, it adopts a ground-level view of the building’s arched colonnade, rather than depicting the imposing facade. On the balcony, several women waving colorful fans appear behind an intricately drawn balustrade. At left, the Spanish flag directs the viewer’s gaze down to the Spanish army, silhouetted with bayonets in the distance. Their presence recalls Homer’s observation that Cuba—then embroiled in a series of wars for independence—was a "red hot place full of soldiers."
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