Watson and the Shark
Copley depicts Brook Watson's rescue from a shark in Havana Harbor. The MFA holds the second full-scale version, accession 89.481, which Copley kept in his studio.
Read the museum recordYour AI tour guide for the Museum of Fine Arts Boston
Photograph a work in the Museum of Fine Arts Boston and Lensmark tells you who made it, when, and why it matters, with every fact linked to its source.
Your tour guide, today
Museum of Fine Arts Boston
Boston, United States
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PrivacyTake a photo and read the work's sourced story
Illustrative photo demo
Illustrative photo demo
Illustrative collection
- Take a permitted photo Use a photo allowed by the museum's current rules.
- Read the sourced history When Lensmark can verify the work, it explains what the sources support and links to them. When it cannot, it says so plainly.
- Ask a follow-up Continue with a question about the work's maker, age or significance.
- Your Museum of Fine Arts Boston walk saves itself. Just take pictures. Each work is kept with its sourced history, grouped by day.
Images in the demo: Watson and the Shark, John Singleton Copley, 1778; The Tea Party, Henry Sargent, about 1824. Both are Museum of Fine Arts Boston works reproduced from public-domain files on Wikimedia Commons.
What the Museum of Fine Arts Boston collection covers
Founded in 1870, the MFA opened its first building in Copley Square on July 4, 1876, and its Huntington Avenue building in November 1909. History
The encyclopedic collection spans ancient and modern art, including paintings, sculpture, antiquities, decorative arts, photography and textiles. Its records include Watson and the Shark, The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit and The Tea Party.
Its collection strengths include European painting, American art, Asian art, and ancient Egyptian and classical art.
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The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit
Sargent painted four sisters in the foyer of their Paris apartment. The painting entered the MFA in 1919 as a gift in memory of their father, accession 19.124.
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The Tea Party
Henry Sargent painted a social gathering across two richly furnished parlors. Commissioned by David Brown, the painting entered the MFA in 1919 as accession 19.12.
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These are collection records, not confirmation that the works are on display today.
Check the photography rules first
The MFA permits personal, non-flash photography of permanent-collection artworks with a small handheld camera, tablet or phone, asks visitors not to photograph loans or temporary exhibitions, prohibits commercial use, distribution or publication without written permission, bars flashes, tripods, monopods, selfie sticks, lighting equipment, video cameras, flashlights, laser pointers and 3D scanning in galleries, requires prior written permission for handheld laser scanners or commissioned photography, and cannot accommodate engagement, wedding or formal portrait requests. Read its current visitor conditions and follow gallery signs before taking a photo. Museum of Fine Arts Boston photography policy
Lensmark needs a connection to answer, so check your signal or any visitor Wi-Fi before you photograph a work.