Sea

Majestic and tyrannical, the sea has never ceased to fascinate artists. Untameable, this force of nature seems to have a life of its own and has inspired many artists. Since antiquity, the sea has been represented in all its glory, century after century it is honoured through various styles and colours. However, this desire to escape to the great outdoors is certainly not only reserved for 21st century painters

Maritime art began at the same time as history painting - in the 15th century, and they share many common traits. Maritime painting mostly depicts scenes of combat, historical incidents and mythology where people play a crucial role. It wasn't until the 17th century that artists stopped depicting people in their seascapes and focused solely on the representation of the landscape itself instead.

In the Middle Ages, shipwrecks and storms terrorised citizens as they interpreted them as signs of God's wrath. he church even used images of the rough sea to hold power over its believers.

Representations in classical painting were strictly governed by academic rules, and often didn't manage to convey true emotion. Maritime scenes joined the mainstream in the 19th century, especially with the arrival of the Romantic period as emotions played a much greater role in marine painting. The two great masters of the period were J.M.W Turner and Caspar David Friedrich who captured the attention of their contemporaries and whose works continue to mesmerise us today.

For the impressionists, the sea was a sublimation of nature. During the 19th century, artists come out of their studios in order to paint and describe nature as they saw and feel it. By the end of the 19th century, the sea was no longer a simple, blue expanse but rather an eruption of emotions illuminated through painting.

Contemporary art offers a new insight into creation. Today, the technique is overrun by the message and intention of the work. Therefore, we find all varieties of sea illustrations where the sea becomes an image of contemporary creation. Even though the sea is sometimes reinvented, it remains true to reality.

The new generation of contemporary artists create works that depict freshness, escape, lost coves, waves, and that salty seaside air. Discover our selection inspired by ocean waters.

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Categories

Subcategories

Sea

RockyrÔse

Sea swell n*11 - Italian painting

Sunbeams Path

Drawing

Window on the sea - Landscape Collection

Sailboat and Sandbar

The precious, nº2

Sky sea / abstraction sea

Coast

Soft breeze

Mares n°36-XXL

Fog in the port

Seascape at Sunset in Spain

Le touareg

Air, Earth and Sky

The Enigmatic Mermaid

Sea shells on the sea shore

Morning on the Bay

Entre Chien et Moi

Fish Market is Closed

Hawaiian Aloha

Les trois barques

Oceanic Orchestra

Blue Sea Serenade

Peace On The Water

La marche des flots

Highland Hope II

Trio

Encre de Mer

Espace d'un rêve n°9

Marine

Entre-murs

Genèse

Browing

Looking for inspiration

Horizon

EmoOonal Souls and the Power of SensiOvity

Sans titre (no comment)

Pêcheur

La traversée

The Story of Water / Histoire d'o

Seascape

Emerald Oasis: Nature's Beauty in 3D Art

Blu

Ocean's Heart

Senza titolo

Vibrations of the sea

Sea edge

Sailboat Painting Alaska

Seaside

Venice Beach Purple Sea

The Crossing 218

Vue depuis le cap de la Barra (l'Estartit)

La Terre est ronde

Le vent des globes

Coastline

Sailboat

Eclats d'écume 124

Moment

Seven Sisters, no. 1

Full moon in Mazotos

Seascape 18

Matin rose

La magie du vent dans les voiles II

Pasage Mar 2

Marine phare rochers