Figure 5 . Winslow Homer ( American , 1836 – 1910 ), Shepherd and Shepherdess , 1878 , glazed earthenware , overglaze enamel decoration , 36 x 49 1/4 in ., The Metropolitan Museum of Art , bequest of Arthur G . Altschul , 2002 , 2003.140
to have been done for his brother , Charles Savage Homer , Jr ., or at least destined for his home , it is inscribed “ Copyright , 1878 , by Winslow Homer ,” suggesting the artist might have considered pursuing some sort of commercial venture along this line ; however , no such endeavor has since been documented . 32
Apparently Homer was pleased with his tile making , exhibiting his wares at the Century Club and at a private viewing for friends and patrons in his studio . His studio also served as the setting for the club ’ s first “ annual ” dinner , held in the spring of 1878 , at which time the idea of a summer sketching trip , “ a journey in search of the picturesque ,” was suggested by F . Hopkinson Smith . 33 The idea was enthusiastically received . Abbey proposed a trip to the Catskills , while Gifford suggested the Adirondacks , and Quartley favored the Isles of Shoals . Reinhart offered for consideration the coast of Maine , and Laffan , passenger agent for the Long Island Railroad ( and responsible for promoting tourism ) quite naturally proposed Long Island . “ That sandy place ?” questioned Paris . “ There ’ s nothing there ,” added Shinn . 34 Furthermore , “ Nobody was ever known to go there !” Wimbridge complained . 35 This last comment spurred the curiosity of Smith , who exclaimed , “ Nobody ever went there ! Then that ’ s the place of all others to go to !” 36 This repartee demonstrates how much of the Tile Club ’ s stories must have been improvised for the sake of entertainment . Clearly Homer had visited eastern Long Island as early as 1874 , when he painted on the beach in East Hampton , yet this was completely ignored . 37 In any event , Reinhart suggested that they might sell the account of their excursion to some “ grasping publisher .” 38 While both newspapermen in the group were reported to have some doubts about that possibility , the trip took place the summer of 1878 and a chronicle of the journey would appear in Scribner ’ s Monthly the following winter ( February 1879 ) as “ The Tile Club at Play .” 39
On June 10 , 1878 , eleven members of the Tile Club , “ animated by a spirit of decoration ,” met at the western terminus of the Long Island Railroad , Hunter ’ s Point to begin their venture . Attending were : O ’ Donovan , Laffan , Gifford , Paris , Abbey , Reinhart , Smith , Quartley , Wimbridge , Shinn , and William Baird , a well known baritone singer who had been newly elected honorary musician member . 40 As this was the club ’ s first trip , the members dressed “ incongruously ,” and were very conspicuous with their cumbersome painting gear . Amused by the sight , O ’ Donovan described the group as having “ a very tiley appearance .” 41 Laffan , as a railroad employee ( and conduit for free passage ), was quite naturally their guide as they boarded the train en route to Babylon , where they would catch a boat to Captree Island , off Long Island ’ s south shore . Braced
Decorative Age or Decorative Craze ? 13