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The Winning Yacht: "Countess of Dufferin" and "Madeline"
The Winning Yacht: "Countess of Dufferin" and "Madeline"
The Winning Yacht: "Countess of Dufferin" and "Madeline"

The Winning Yacht: "Countess of Dufferin" and "Madeline"

Artist (American, born United Kingdom, 1829 - 1901)
Date1877
OriginUnited States of America
MediumOil on canvas
Dimensions40 × 32 in. (101.6 × 81.3 cm)
ClassificationsPainting
Credit LineCarolyn K. and Richard F. Barry III Art Purchase Fund
Object number2018.17
Label TextEdward Moran (American, born British, 1829-1901) The Winning Yacht: “Countess of Dufferin” and “Madeleine” Oil on canvas, 1877 Carolyn K. and Richard F. Barry, III. Art Purchase Fund The America’s Cup is the oldest international sailing race. It was given its name in 1851 after the schooner America, built by the newly formed New York Yacht Club (NYYC), won an annual regatta around the Isle of Wight, England, against fifteen yachts in the English Royal Yacht Squadron. The third challenge, by the Royal Canadian Yacht Club of Toronto in 1876, is the subject of Moran’s painting. It pitted the new Canadian yacht Countess of Dufferin, a centerboard built like American schooners of the day, against the New York Yacht Club’s The Madeleine. Due to a lack of funds while under construction, the Canadian yacht lacked the features and finishing touches needed for a successful challenge and the Countess was completely outpaced by the Madeleine. Moran likely observed the scene from the deck of a steamboat that brought spectators from New York City out to the Atlantic Ocean. Depicting the racing boats on an open rough sea while the race was underway, the painting shows the Madeleine in the foreground (flying its own burgee and that of the NYYC). Behind it to the left, the Countess flies its own red burgee and that of the Royal Canadian Yacht Club. The New York Times reported, “While the two yachts worked their way out through the Narrows, the scene was really enchanting. The fleet of yachts were coming on in hot pursuit and the glancing waters were beaten and coursed by the throbbing, palpitating steam-boats.” Moran’s composition captures the ships slicing through the waves, their S-curved movement emphasizing the critical moment of the race, the turn around the buoy.
Status
Not on view