This late 19th-century oil painting by British artist Thomas Rose Miles (1844-1916) depicts a fishing boat buffeted by a wild sea at daybreak.
Trawlers battered by rolling waves, lifeboats struggling atop treacherous breakers, crews lost and stricken ejected from schooners. Thomas Rose Miles was obsessed with seaborne drama, each theatrical scene conjured from his active imagination. Described as “probably the best nineteenth-century marine artist at painting this subject”, his legacy is a triumphant one.
Born in landlocked Birmingham, it’s unclear when his fascination for seafaring began. Perhaps, like many boys of his generation, he gained an interest through fiction, captivated by the tales of Moby Dick and other equally gripping adventures. Storms were his raison d’etre - wild conditions that could tear a sail to shreds. Masses of water towering over hapless fishermen as glowering clouds dip low on their approach.
He was apparently self-taught, although undertook various study trips including to the Netherlands. The Dutch have a rich heritage of maritime painting and undoubtedly inspired him. He painted views across the British Isles - from the Isle of Wight to Galway Bay and from Cornwall to Guernsey. It’s not known whether he visited every location as the coastlines are usually in miniature. But in each rendering of a hostile sea, he captured its devastation with equal aplomb.
Here, in this piece from around 1870, five desperate fishermen cling to a weathered vessel following an almighty storm. Its oars are redundant amid turbulent conditions. Further on, the main sail of a stranded boat has been wrecked by gusts - its crew thrown overboard. A glimmer of hope arrives in the form of daybreak.
Thomas Rose Miles exhibited several works at London’s Royal Academy and also at the Royal Society of British Artists. He’s represented in numerous public collections including the Bristol Museum & Art Gallery and the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom.
The painting sold for $2,400 at Bonhams, San Francisco, in 2008.
Signed in the lower left and held within a later moulded frame.
Learn more about Thomas Rose Miles in our directory.
Medium: Oil on canvas laid on board
Overall size: 31½” x 21½” / 80cm x 55cm
Year of creation: c. 1870
Labels & Inscriptions: Name and title plaque attached to the reverse.
Provenance: SoMa Estate Auction, San Francisco, 16 Mar 2008, lot 2206 / Private collection, UK.
Condition: Assessed and approved by our conservator. Cleaned. Fine and settled craquelure, as you would expect. The paint layer is stable.
Artist’s auction maximum: £30,000 for ‘Weed Gatherers, West Coast of Ireland/Morning of the Hair’, Oil on canvas, Christie’s, The Irish Art, London, 2007 (lot 52).
Our reference: BRV1871
