A Shipwreck In A Stormy Sea By The Coast by Claude-Joseph Vernet

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The catastrophic depiction of a sea was commissioned to the artist Cloude Joseph Vernet by one of the richest Russian Nikolai Yusupov at the time. Vernet produced a full series of such shipwreck by a thunderous storm with oil on canvas.

As an adept artist, Vernet has tried to depict the full scenario and happening when storm wrecks a ship on a coast. The boat is already going down with the tall tsunami-like waves. The wreckage of the broken ship is floating on the uneven surface of water. In the distance, there are two more ships which are struggling for survival but probably won’t win against the strong thunderstorm. This is such a dangerous scenario to experience in real life. Moreover, in real experience, what will make us mute by shock is the scene when we come to know that a little boat full of people is also in the middle of thriving water intending to thrash the boat into a coastal rock.

The saved ones or the people at the bay are left with awe and the helplessness. As the painting shows, they could try to save the people who have jumped in the ocean or scream in fear. Nothing more.

It is a despairing scene. But also bring us close to the real life of the shores. The oceans have always been a wondrous place for majority of us who haven’t seen or experienced its vicious form of ear-piercing roars and strong waves which can invert tremendous boats like nothing.

Although, showing us a fraction of the real face of the storm, the artist has tried to put a little silver lining. Opening up a windows for the blue sky to look inside the storm gives a little hope that the storm is about to get over.