British Marine Art (Romantic Era)

The tradition of British marine art as a specialized genre with a strong emphasis on the shipping depicted began in large part with the artists Willem Van de Velde the Elder and his son, called the Younger in the early 18th century.

[9] Later Dutch artists like Hendrick Vroom and Cornelius Claesz, however, developed new methods for painting, often from a horizontal point of view, with a lower horizon and more focus on realism than symmetry.

[10] Most notable of the Dutch artists’ who influenced the British marine art tradition were Willem van de Velde the Elder, and his son, the Younger.

[12] The methods developed by the Dutch to successfully depict some of the sea's more elusive features (light and shadow, or the reflection of the sky over the ocean's uneven surface, for example) were adopted by British artists as they founded their own marine art tradition.

[14] In the Romantic era, interest in marine art expanded from its initial exclusive audience of sailors and naval officers to the general public.

With the increase of industry in Britain and the threatening resurgence of the French royal navy during the time after the Peace of Utrecht, England found means and motivation to improve its sea power on both the level of mercantilism and conquest.

For a contemporary depiction of the British navy during the Romantic era one might look to the popular fictional series by Patrick O'Brian which follows naval officer Captain Aubrey and his companion Maturin during the Napoleonic Wars or the Hornblower Saga by C.S.

Landscape painters found inspiration in the sea and began to create work which was not always accurate, but which could be sold among the less technically sea-savvy art collectors in England.

This stands in contrast to earlier marine painting (most often in the form of ship portraits for seamen and officers), which was judged solely by accuracy and not valued for artistic quality.

The standards outlined in the Liber Nauticus by Dominic and John Thomas Serres makes clear the level of expertise some expected in marine art.

It is evident that this Artist has a far deeper knowledge of his subject than his compeer, and has not violated authenticity upon any material point: he has not painted to amaze but to satisfy: he has grouped both his pictures with an admirable taste; all the minutiae of the marine are vigorously preserved, and the effect of his atmosphere at morning and evening is strictly compatible with truth and harmony.

Some marine artists and engravers made etchings and aquatints of the pictures bought by art collectors and such, and these copies could be sold to the general public at more affordable prices.