Artwork
Seascape with Full Moon
Seascape with Full Moon is an ink print by the Romanticist artist Jacobus Buys. It dates from 1779 and is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art.
About this work
Overview
Seascape with Full Moon is an 1779 aquatint on laid paper by Dutch artist Cornelis Ploos van Amstel. The print depicts a nocturnal maritime scene illuminated by a full moon, rendered in the tonal range characteristic of the aquatint process. Its dimensions and current collection location are not specified, but the work exemplifies late‑18th‑century printmaking.
Subject & Meaning
The image presents a dark, restless sea under a luminous full moon. Two modest vessels dominate the foreground: one steered by a solitary figure, the other bearing two passengers. Distant ships punctuate the horizon, their sails catching faint moonlight. The composition conveys the tension between human vulnerability and the expansive, indifferent ocean.
Technique & Style
Ploos van Amstel employed aquatint, a method that creates broad, watercolor‑like tones through acid‑etched resin grounds. The artist layered scratches and textured washes to model the interplay of light and shadow on water and clouds, producing a gritty surface that emphasizes the sea’s turbulence and the moon’s subdued glow.
History & Provenance
Created in 1779, the print reflects the artist’s interest in atmospheric effects and marine subjects during the Dutch Enlightenment period. While specific ownership records are not provided, the work has been catalogued in scholarly references on Ploos van Amstel’s oeuvre and is held in at least one public collection devoted to 18th‑century prints.
Own this work as a print
Artist & collection
Portrait of Cornelis Ploos van Amstel
Portrait of Elisabeth Troost (1730-1790)
Johannes Monnikhoff (1707-1787)
Portrait of Elisabeth Troost (1730-1790)
Scene from the Play 'Lubbert Lubbertse of de geadelde boer' by M. van Breda
Portrait of Cornelis Ploos van Amstel
Cavalier and Lady with a Page
Pancake Woman
