Ramon Martí I Alsina, Seascape

19th century

Sold by Brave Fine Art

Description

An energetic depiction of a powerful storm at sea by influential Spanish realist, Ramon Martí i Alsina (1826–1894).

Several figures are desperately clinging onto a small boat that’s partially submerged amid wild waters. An older man yells to a fellow sailor as he grapples with the remnants of the mast. While a second figure reaches up and frantically tries to clamber aboard the doomed vessel.

Martí i Alsina was at his best when painting the powerful effects of nature in a quick and fluid style. In this particular work, he cleverly drags our eye from the wrecked boat on the left, diagonally upwards towards the destructive wave. By doing so, he puts us right in the picture as if we can feel ourselves being buffeted by the wind.

It’s likely that he created this piece towards the end of career when he’d adopted a looser, almost impressionistic, style. During the 1870s, he faced multiple tragedies, including the loss of his two children and the continual pressure of financial ruin.

We’ve written a blog article that explains a little more about this important Catalan luminary.

https://bravefineart.com/blogs/news/ramon-marti-i-alsina-a-catalan-giant

The painting is housed within a highly decorative fish-scale gilded frame, which is likely to be the original.

Medium: Oil on canvas

Size: 35½” x 23” / 90cm x 58.5cm

Year of creation: c. 1885

Provenance: Barcelona, Spain

Condition: Minor losses around the periphery but otherwise fine. Canvas relined. Frame with age-related wear.

Artist’s auction highlight: £18,130 achieved in 2009 for ‘Paisaje’ (170cm x 109cm).

Physical Dimensions

Height

58.5cm (23.03")

Width

90cm (35.43")

Depth

4cm (1.57")

Declaration

Brave Fine Art has dated this piece to the 19th Century.

Reference Numbers

Sellingantiques Reference

SA671675

Description

An energetic depiction of a powerful storm at sea by influential Spanish realist, Ramon Martí i Alsina (1826–1894).

“

Several figures are desperately clinging onto a small boat that’s partially submerged amid wild waters.

Brave Fine Art

An older man yells to a fellow sailor as he grapples with the remnants of the mast. While a second figure reaches up and frantically tries to clamber aboard the doomed vessel.

fig 1. Ramon Martí i Alsina, Seascape — fig 1. Ramon Martí I Alsina, Seascape

Martí i Alsina was at his best when painting the powerful effects of nature in a quick and fluid style. In this particular work, he cleverly drags our eye from the wrecked boat on the left, diagonally upwards towards the destructive wave. By doing so, he puts us right in the picture as if we can feel ourselves being buffeted by the wind.

fig 2. Ramon Martí i Alsina, Seascape — fig 2. Ramon Martí I Alsina, Seascape

It’s likely that he created this piece towards the end of career when he’d adopted a looser, almost impressionistic, style. During the 1870s, he faced multiple tragedies, including the loss of his two children and the continual pressure of financial ruin.