Boy with Cows

A self-taught artist, John Costigan preceded each of his watercolors with a series of compositional drawings on the same scale intended for the finished work. He drew the composition, once resolved, onto the final sheet (his graphite lines are readily visible here) before applying his washes in a more spontaneous manner. Throughout his mature career, Costigan found his subjects at or near the farm he owned in rural Orangeburg, New York.