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Thomas Birch
1779 -
1851
An American Ship in
Distress, 1841
Oil on canvas
36 x 53 3/4 in.
Regarded as America's first marine artist,
Birch is known for his paintings of the early American
shipping industry and for a series devoted to the naval
engagements of the War of 1812. He was also drawn to
shipwrecks, the subject of some of his most distinctive
paintings.
In this unusually large work, a violent storm has damaged
the masts, sails, and rigging of a ship. As the crew lowers
a lifeboat from the stern, a rescue boat approaches from the
right, and a sidewheeler and another vessel come to the
crew's aid from the left. The transparency and volume of the
waves, the changing weather, and the other accurate details
persuasively convey the plight of the ship and her crew.
Birch was an admirer of Claude-Joseph Vernet, who also
painted stormy coastal scenes and whose Seaport at Sunset is part of
the museum's collection.