Coast Guard Station

This tranquil and sunny scene by New York painter Edward Hopper depicts a coast guard station at Cape Elizabeth, Maine. The small complex of buildings, dating back to the late 19th century, was built in relation to the main stations in South Portland with the two historic twin lighthouses.

The work, a watercolor and charcoal on paper from 1927, is now housed at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Edward Hopper and his wife Jo spent several summers visiting the beautiful locations along the rocky coast of Maine. From 1914 to 1929, the painter created numerous views of Ogunquit, Monhegan Island, Rockland, Cape Elizabeth, Two Lights, and Portland.

Monhegan Island, in particular, is known as "The Artist’s Island." Its wild beauty and wave-battered granite shores have inspired a long list of talents who began flocking there in the mid-19th century. Prominent early landscape artists included William Trost Richards, Alfred T. Bricher, and Samuel Peter Rolt Triscott.

However, the peak of activity—the golden age of Monhegan—occurred in the first half of the 20th century with contributions from Robert Henri, George Bellows, Rockwell Kent, Jay Hall Connaway, Reuben Tam, Elena Jahn, and, of course, Hopper. Many other illustrious names were irresistibly drawn to the island's charm, including Andrew Winter, Abraham J. Bogdanove, and Jamie Wyeth.

Today, the Monhegan Artists’ Residency, established in 1989, keeps the tradition alive by offering hospitality and support to young local artists who wish to stay on the island to explore and refine their creative skills.