Whalers by J.M.W. Turner (1845)

Beautiful.

I came across this sublime painting at the Tate recently.

This painting is typical of Turner’s atmospheric style characteristic of his later years (died in 1851).

According to the Tate:

This painting shows the violence and danger of a whale hunt. Turner uses an arc of white paint and downwards strokes of grey – a flurry of rain and wind – to draw attention to a whaler dressed in white. He draws back a lance, aiming for a bleeding whale. Turner had read about whaling in Thomas Beale’s Natural History of the Sperm Whale (1839). Describing a hunt in Japanese waters, Beale talked of the whale as ‘a victim to the tyranny and selfishness’ but also the ‘great power’ of man. Turner was no doubt drawn to this tension – between the idea of whalers as heroes and murderers.

Interesting that you can barely make out the whale’s emergent head (adding to the unease?) ... and the whaling ship appears ghostly in the background.

I love the power & energy of Turner’s atmospheres - the terrifying ocean depths and man’s inherent vulnerability. A great contrast between the modesty and the cruelty of man.