Merrill Coffin’s Night Flight captures the quiet splendor of an autumn sunset over a familiar rural landscape. A white farmhouse anchors the left side of the canvas, taking up nearly half the width. Its two chimneys release faint wisps of smoke, a gentle sign of life and warmth inside. Bare birch trees frame the home, their branches silhouetted against the deepening sky, while a golden light glows from a second-floor window like a lantern welcoming the night.
To the right, three Canadian geese soar across the sky, their graceful flight drawing the viewer’s gaze back toward the glowing window. Below, the fields are washed in warm golden tones with shadows of the night settling in. The fading sunlight touching the earth with a soft brilliance before dusk settles in. The rolling hills beyond are bathed in the center with rose and pink hues, unmistakably marking this moment of sunset—the end of the day, rich with color and reflection.
Coffin’s composition is both dynamic and intentional. The triangle created by the geese in motion, the luminous window, and the old mailbox in the foreground guides the eye in a natural rhythm, pulling the viewer deeper into the painting. This interplay of light, form, and movement elevates Night Flight into one of Merrill Coffin’s most striking works.
At once serene and alive, the painting is a meditation on endings and continuity: the close of a day, the migration of geese, the enduring glow of home. In Night Flight, Coffin distills the essence of a sunset into a scene that is as timeless as it is personal.
The private collection of Daniel and Sandy Nagurney.
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