Sailing boats on a stormy sea

The sky on this oil painting is so overcast that the horizon and churning sea seem almost to merge into one another seamlessly. Various shades of grey and white define the picture. Three wooden sailing boats battle against the high waves, one vessel dominating the foreground, with two behind it. Only on the front boat can a few men be seen. Unlike the others, it has already taken down its two sails somewhat so as not to give the strong wind so much to contend with. One of the sails is reddish-brown, the other white. The two sailboats behind are swarmed by a number of seagulls. Achenbach’s fondness for seascapes is said to be partly due to his family’s move to St. Petersburg across the rough Baltic Sea. His travels to northern European countries and their seashores also provided him with motifs and inspiration for his works. Dutch and Flemish landscape painting in particular left their mark in this regard.