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

Music of stones

Bow Into It

Children on the beach

Where Sky Meets Sea

Amalfi Coast

Algas 45-XIX

True blue

Silence is bliss, Painting, Acrylic on canvas

Apaissement

La Mer XXV

Fluid horizon V

Fluid horizon XI

Fluid horizon X

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Fluid horizon XL

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Fluid horizon L

Fluid horizon XLV

Seaflower II

Au coucher du soleil (At sunset)

Maï Aqui ?

Après la tempête (After the storm)

Relief Blue 17

Relief Blue 13

Melody of the Country

Harbor's repose

Patagonia

Tania Mallet

Ariane abandonnée

Paysage avec lac (PM08)

Underwater Blue Pink

Sleepy Lagoon

Jump

Marée

At the beach

Underwater Pastel Green

Endless Light

At the beach

Underwater Pastel Green No1

Water reflection

Seascape

Port in Fano

Le marchand d’épices

California Spring

Boat houses

Liberté à l'horizon... (Esprit voile 2024)