In The Storm on the Sea of Galilee, how is the Description discussed?
The painting, in vertical format, shows a close-up view of Christ's disciples struggling frantically against the heavy storm to regain control of their fishing boat. A huge wave beats the bow and rips the sail. One of the disciples is seen vomiting over the side. Another one, looking directly at the viewer, is a self-portrait of the artist. Only Christ, depicted on the right, remains calm.The painting depicts the event described in Luke 8:22–25 in which the disciples in charge of the vessel were scared by the sudden storm and awoke a sleeping Jesus in their panic. Rembrandt's version is considered among the more accurate depictions of the event as described in the Bible. The perspective is lowered, so that the sky occupies more space than the sea, but the boat, its crew and Christ remain the main focal point of the painting. The ship is similar to a hoeker, a North Sea fishing vessel. Rembrandt changed the hull to make it appear more asymmetrical, while the mast appears heavier than the classical square or triangular sail. Although Dutch artists of the time often strived for accuracy in their portrayal of ships in seascapes German art historian Christian Tümpel noted Rembrandt's tendency to use earlier Bible illustrations as a basis for adapting props, such as the disciples' ship, to fit his own imagination.Rembrandt employed tenebrism (a style of dramatic illustration with stark contrasts of light and dark), as a way to emphasize visually Christ’s miracle in calming the sea. Light emanates from the upper left of the painting, and a glimpse of the blue sky may be seen through the storm. As the scene moves toward the right, the boat and the crew are thrown back into shadow.
The close-up treatment of the subject and the painting's overall composition are evocative of a Adriaen Collaert print after a design by the Flemish artist Maerten de Vos. The print was included in the 12-part Vita, passio et Resvrrectio Iesv Christ work published by Jan and Raphael Sadeler in Antwerp in 1583. Rembrandt's painting follows the portrait format of Collaert's print and also depicts the boat in a forward tilting position. As with the print, most of the space is consumed by the main motif of the disciples on the boat struggling against the elements.
disciples Maerten de Vos Jan and Raphael Sadeler seascape Adriaen Collaert Luke 8 Rembrandt Christian Tümpel North Sea tenebrism Luke 8:22–25