''Shipwreck on the Norwegian Coast'' or ''Shipwreck on the Coast of Norway'' (Norwegian - ''Skibbrudd ved den norske kyst'') is an 1832

marine painting Marine art or maritime art is a form of figurative art (that is, painting, drawing, printmaking and sculpture) that portrays or draws its main inspiration from the sea. Maritime painting is a genre that depicts ships and the sea—a genre parti ...

Johan Christian Dahl Johan Christian Claussen Dahl (24 February 178814 October 1857), often known as or , was a Danish- Norwegian artist who is considered the first great romantic painter in Norway, the founder of the "golden age" of Norwegian painting. He is often ...

. It is now in the

National Gallery of Norway The National Gallery () is a gallery in Oslo, Norway. Since 2003 it is administratively a part of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design. History It was established in 1842 following a parliamentary decision from 1836. Originally lo ...

, to which it was left in 1931 by Louise and Johannes G. Heftye. Dahl had already painted a first version of the work in 1819, and painted several others in his career, inspired by his five long voyages along the coast of Norway. A smaller variant is in the Bergen Billedgalleri.

History

Shipwrecks were a popular motif in romantic painting and Dahl created a large number of paintings on this theme. Alongside the inherent drama, the motif can also symbolize the vulnerability of human life and dependence on natural forces and higher powers. Dahl was educated at the Kunstakademiet in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

(1811–1817), and then moved to

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

, in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, where he spent the rest of his life. In Dresden, he was a close friend and, from 1823, also a neighbor of the great German Romantic artist

Caspar David Friedrich Caspar David Friedrich (; 5 September 1774 – 7 May 1840) was a German Romanticism, German Romantic Landscape painting, landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation, whose often symbolic, and anti ...

, whose paintings ''After the Storm'' (1807) may have inspired Dahl to paint shipwrecks. Dahl made the first shipwreck paintings as early as 1819. In 1823–1824 he made three almost identical paintings on this theme. One of these was destroyed in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

during World War II, and another is owned today by

Lillehammer Art Museum Lillehammer Art Museum () is an art gallery located in Lillehammer, Norway. The museum was founded in 1921 as a gift from merchant Einar Lunde. It has three main collections: one consisting of over 100 paintings from adherents of the Matisse scho ...

. Dahl, during his time in Germany, devoted himself almost exclusively to landscape painting and painted a large number of Norwegian landscapes despite not having been to

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

for many years. In 1826, Dahl made a longer journey home to Norway, where he traveled from Christiania (now Oslo), via

Telemark Telemark () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway. Telemark borders the counties of Vestfold, Buskerud, Vestland, Rogaland and Agder. In 2020, Telemark merged with the county of Vestfold to form the county o ...

. Outside

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

, he witnessed a shipwreck, which he drew on the spot. This trip originated a large number of landscape paintings and during 1829–1832 he painted his most famous shipwreck works. He continued to paint similar motifs long afterwards, for example ''Hardangervidda'' (1846).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shipwreck on the Norwegian Coast 1832 paintings Maritime paintings Paintings by Johan Christian Dahl Paintings in the National Museum of Norway Oil on canvas paintings