Robert Henri first traveled to Maine in July of 1903. He made two subsequent trips in 1911 and 1918. During his first visit, which he took with Edward Redfield, he stood in awe of the spectacular natural landscape. He and Redfield stayed on Monhegan Island for four days, with Henri working feverishly to complete twenty-five oil sketches. Henri and his first wife returned later that summer and stayed for 6 weeks. Together they explored the beautiful terrain of the island and painted what they saw. Henri completed a series of pochades, small portable sketches that captured the color and atmosphere of a scene. He wrote to his friend John Sloan, “I painted a whole batch of things and feel pretty good over a lot of them.” 1

Gray Day, Maine, which was probably painted during his stay on Monhegan with Redfield, brilliantly captures the barren tranquility of the island. Henri alternates between using thinly applied paint and a heavier impasto to achieve the atmospheric effects. Henri reveled in spontaneity and nature caught in flux as the loose and energetic brushwork of this oil sketch clearly demonstrates. Indeed such a landscape painting stood in direct contrast to the finished academic approach taught in America’s foremost art schools. It even stood in opposition to the American Impressionists, who were starting to object to Henri’s flouting of the importance of technique.

At this early point in his career, Henri’s major interest was in painting landscapes, as his portraits from this time were largely driven by commissions. He worked ardently at Monhegan and used his strong powers of observation to capture the inner spirit of the place. The energetic brushwork and rough-hewn texture of the board match the elemental drama of the coast. Henri’s passionate commitment to integrate art and life, to “paint what you feel . . . what is real to you,” is laid plain for the viewer in this beautiful and important early landscape.

1 Quoted in Bennard B. Perlman, Robert Henri: His Life and Art (1991), p. 59