There are countless works of art that show vessels at anchor. But where’s the anchor? Out of sight, deep down at the bottom of the sea bed. To correct this bit of artistic injustice, I have gathered the following works of art in which anchors are given the prominence they deserve.
How many still send postcards by mail? People now use email and social media to send messages from near and far. Gone are the days when one would handwrite a greeting on a postcard, lick a stamp to paste onto it, and dispatch the card by mail to a friend or loved one. Come and have a nostalgic look at the lost age of postcards:
I have been curious about the “Jacob’s ladder”, the old name for the ladder used by pilots to get on board and disembark from a ship. Not wanting to remain ignorant of the subject, I did some research. The information I have gathered thus far is interesting. Indeed, it is food for thought.
Paintings of glorious sunsets at sea, swarthy fishermen, dramatic naval battles, and heart-wrenching shipwrecks may move and inspire the viewer. But there is no marine art more touching and endearing than that which depicts children by the sea. Here are some examples coupled with a few words of wisdom about children.
Poems about maritime pilots are so rare that ‘Le Pilote de Tonga’ (The Pilot of Tonga) is a veritable gem. But there’s another reason this prose poem is special. It was written in 1856 by Charles Meryon (1821–1868), a French artist, printmaker and naval officer whose biography makes for interesting reading
American artist Georgia O’Keeffe (1887–1986) painted seashells like no one else. A key figure in the early 20th century movement called “modernism”, she rejected the traditional ways of representing reality. But she had her own inimitable style. For inspiration, she did not turn to the industrial world, as many modernist artists did, but to Nature.
There is something about sailboats that make them attractive to many people. Is it their graceful movement as they glide through the water? The beautiful shape of ther wind-driven sails? Or is it the sense of freedom that the sight of them evokes in the viewer? No matter, sailboats are a delight to the eye. Enjoy the following drawings as you would a cup of home-brewed coffee.
A fortnight ago, I featured in an article some fantastic paintings of fishermen at sea. I called these toilers of the sea “the invisible ones” to debunk the IMO-initiated myth of seafarers as being invisible to the rest of humanity. There is another group of workers who fall under the same category: lighthouse keepers.
The great French painter Henri Matisse was such a colourist that his works are bound to induce feelings of delight and happiness. Through his art, which is often both expressive and decorative, we find ourselves in touch once again with the child spirit in us.
But though Matisse handled colour with audacity, he went about it with conscious deliberation. Like a musical composer, he positioned each colour and each element in their proper places. The result was art that appeals to our desire for the two things that are sometimes denied to us in real life: freedom and harmony.
Fishermen are the invisible ones (not the seafarers as the IMO and the maritime unions and charities falsely portray them). Hopefully, the following oil paintings will shine some light on the lives of fishermen, these toilers of the sea who deserve everyone’s gratitude.
Mention the term “harbour pilot” or “maritime pilot”, and many people would picture a man climbing a ladder to board a vessel at sea. Surely, there is more to a pilot’s life than going up and coming down a ship’s ladder.
The boat models of Egyptian antiquity do not only highlight the religious beliefs that spurred their construction. They also point to the rich civilisation that developed around the River Nile. The ancient Egyptians used boats, not only for commerce, but also for recreation and sports.