The Terrifying Reality of Losing Control
Thomas Cole did not paint this version of The Voyage of Life out of pure divine inspiration. He painted it out of spite. He had a brutal falling out with the wealthy patron who commissioned the original series and decided to paint the whole thing over again in 1842. The result is a massive oil on canvas that shows exactly what Cole thought of being an adult. It is a raw and unforgiving look at growing up.
Look closely at the boat carrying the man through the churning rapids. The rudder is completely gone. There is no steering wheel for adulthood. You just hang on and hope the current does not smash you against the rocks. The dark and stormy skies are not just dramatic weather. They are the inevitable chaos and suffering that come with getting older.
The truly brutal part is up in the clouds. Demons are waiting in the storm while a guardian angel watches from a very safe distance. The angel is not swooping in to save the day. The divine protector is just sitting back and letting the man face the terror alone. Cole showed this piece at the National Academy of Design in New York to an audience of people who probably felt just as adrift in their own lives. Manhood is a masterpiece of American landscape art but it is also a giant monument to the terrifying reality of losing complete control.
References
Powell, Earl A. Thomas Cole. Harry N. Abrams, 1990.
Truettner, William H. and Alan Wallach. Thomas Cole Landscape into History. Yale University Press, 1994.