Full Moon Rising | Ghost Ship Series
In a series of surreal graphic works of Ghost ships, The Full Moon Rising could be named the title one. It is an ideal example of this genre. Looking over the series of marine paintings, the attentive viewer may easily recognise the themes, ideas, characteristics for the romantic trend in fine-art. Let’s call them romantic patterns. In art, they are identified by repetitive elements. Let take a look at them in this work. The first thing is a disturbing sea, fearsome ocean, waterscape, mountains, sky, and clouds. A man is a little grain of sand, and he is not present here. He would be lost against the background of the glory of natural elements. The second thing is different emotions of the sea. They are always different as in humans, and sometimes can spill over the edge. The third element is the world of romantic artists that is infinitely big. The sky is always high, unlimited, objects that are under the sky are stretched up, as if they are struggling to reach the sky and the proportions are exaggerated.
The fourth element is the image of the moon. It is often present in artistic expressions such as painting, graphics, poetry, and in romanticism it reaches the highest form. The lunar landscape here sets the theme of timeless space. The artist uses the moon to create an epic mood, to immerse in a world of dreams and visions, excitement and anguish. The Moon's rise is always spectacular, romantic. The giant companion of the Earth fascinates and enchants. The artist's range of permissible hyperbole is much wider than in conventional realistic art. Macrocosm is opposed to the hero of the plot – the ship. It is illuminated from the twilight darkness by the dying light of the Moon, the stars, through which the boundaries of reality are blurred. It is at such a moment that a person comes to confidence in the boundlessness of his own existence, in the absence of limits between him and the universe.
The lonely ship is the fifth component of the romantic sea-scape. Solitude is the main self-awareness of the artist. No doubt, the author is a hopeless romantic. He is mesmerised by traveling and the wind of wandering. A realist, wherever he is, is interested in something typical, characteristic and, ultimately, prosaic. A romantic, on the contrary, hunts for rarities, looking for an unprecedented and original, unique and exotic.
The full moon is a very beautiful phenomenon, it is concealing many secrets. At the moment of illumination by the sunlight, the moon appears before us in all its glory. This is the period of maximum impact on all aspects of life. It is impossible to deny the significant influence that our nearest cosmic body has on Earth. The impact of the moon can be traced in almost every aspect of life, whether it is the formation of tropical storms, changing tidal levels or increasing admissions to psychiatric wards. Many reproductive terrestrial cycles correspond to lunar cycles, which have become cornerstones for many religious, astrological, and medical practices in the world. Full moons are traditionally associated with insanity, insomnia, and various magical phenomena. The etymology of the word "crazy" or "madness" refers to the Latin name of the Moon.
The gravitational pull of the full moon in this picture is impressive. The Moon attracts the phantom ship and does not let it go far. Despite the fact that the wind blows to the sails of the vessel, it only swayed imperceptibly on the water. The ship has no need to hurry. On this night, he got to the shore or run aground. But nothing threatens to the ghost ship. On the contrary, meeting with it is the forerunner of all troubles and catastrophes for seamen. Sailors are generally superstitious people. It is like they feel that they were going on their last sea voyage by stepping onto the deck of the ship.
The picture composition emphasizes the connection between the ship and the Moon. As if it comes to life in its reflected light, and the fuller the moon and the stronger its radiation, the more distinct its outlines. This is the nature of ghosts; their matter is manifested in the moonlight. The artist composes the image of the phantom vessel from very subtle refinements. Attention is drawn to the water flowing from the ship, from the rails of its masts, from sails, sides and deck. It was fixed together with the ship at the time of the ship's death. And the thin threads of water became his age-old part. The lyrical seascape with the ship does not cause anxiety and fear. You may look at it for a long time, it fascinates, hypnotizes, pacifies. The moon is a constant companion of the night, draws its image with its presence, patronizing a little of its silver light on the night mysteries. That is why so often you can find images of the mystical and lyrical moon in creations of famous writers, poets, and composers.
© George Grie, 2008
Software media: Adobe Photoshop ®, Adobe Illustrator ®, Autodesk 3ds Max ®, Planetside Terragen ®, Photo Stock, Paint Shop Pro Photo ®,
(Title Rus) Восход полной луны | серия Корабли -призраки.
*Text editor Heather W.W.
Publications:
2008 Welt Der Wunder, World of Wonder magazine, Germany. The "Full moon rising" work published in, Article "Are there ghost ships in our oceans?"
2009 The Journal of Anomalous Sciences. The number of images and "Full moon rising" have been featured in, Spotlight on the Artist George Grie, (Mikkola Jari). World Nexus Publications
2009. Xtreamer Media Player, USA, The number of images have featured in, Xtreamer Network Media Player as user interface and navigation backgrounds.
2011 Endoras, The Dark Legacy, CD cover, Switzerland, symphonic power metal style.
2013 Final Voyage, Dark Angel, USA, CD cover, Rock-Alternative-Hard Rock.
2017 ARAGO, the flying Dutchmen, CD cover, Austria, melodic progressive metal band.
© Copyright | George Grie | Copying is permitted only with an active link to neosurrealismart.com
Full Moon Rising | Ghost Ship Series | romantic surrealism