Ryder, Albert Pinkham

(born March 19, 1847, New Bedford, Mass., U.S.—died March 28, 1917, Elmhurst, N.Y.) U.S. painter. Born in a fishing port, he never lost his obsession with the sea. He settled in New York City c. 1870 and briefly studied painting. His highly personal seascapes, including Toilers of the Sea, reflect his feeling of human helplessness against the forces of nature. Thick yellow light (usually moonlight) heightens the mood of mystery in such paintings as The Race Track and Death on a Pale Horse. He was a strikingly imaginative painter, and though he was a solitary one, his works became well known in his lifetime.

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