Artwork
Yachts Sailing in a Breeze
Yachts Sailing in a Breeze is an oil painting by the Baroque artist Adriaen van der Salm. It dates from 1692 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
Overview
Yachts Sailing in a Breeze is an oil painting depicting yachts at sea, created using a grisaille technique that employs shades of gray and white.
Subject & Meaning
The scene shows several yachts navigating choppy waters under a cloudy sky, with their sails filled by the wind. The composition is structured around the central perspective created by the arrangement of the ships and the diagonal of advancing waves.
Technique & Style
The painting is executed in grisaille, using a pen-painting technique where the artist drew onto a prepared oil ground with a reed pen and Indian ink. The use of parallel hatching creates a sense of depth, with lines and shapes lightening towards the horizon.
History & Provenance
The artist, Adriaen van Salm, was a schoolmaster and textile merchant in Delfshaven near Rotterdam, who also practiced pen-painting, a technique likely invented by Willem van de Velde the Elder.
Artist & collection
Artist
Adriaen van der Salm painted ships and sea battles in oil during the late 1600s and early 1700s.
