Art Work by Rich Wagner
  • Great Artists
  • Art Museums
  • Art by Rich Wagner
  • Art reviews index
  • Beyondships Art Blog
  • Beyondships Cruise Destinations
  • Original Art
  • Art by Valda
  • Beyondships cruise ships
  • Notices
  • Privacy Policy
  • London Art Roundup
  • AMB
  • Stephen Card Exhibition
  • Visiting Exhibitions

Beyondships Art Blog

Art exhibition review: "ocean liners: Speed AND STYLE"

5/26/2018

 
Picture
Ocean liners have earned a place in history. During the era of ocean liner travel, these ships transported millions of immigrants from Europe to North America and Australia, they provided a transportation link between the nations of the world, carried troops, acted as hospitals during times of war and were at the forefront of technology. Thus, one might well expect to find an exhibition about ocean liners at a history museum.

But what do ocean liners have to do with art? “Ocean Liners: Speed and Style” at London's Victoria and Albert Museum explores this question with 250 objects, including paintings, sculpture, and ship models, alongside objects from shipyards, wall panels, furniture, fashion, textiles, photographs, posters and film. Beginning with Brunel’s steamship, the Great Eastern of 1859, the exhibition traces the design stories behind some of the world’s most luxurious liners including the Beaux-Arts interiors of Kronprinz Wilhelm, Titanic and its sister ship, Olympic; the floating Art Deco palaces of Queen Mary and Normandie; and the streamlined Modernism of SS United States and QE2. The answer to the above-stated question is that ocean liners intersected with art in quite a few ways.

First, ocean liners intersected with art as architecture. Beginning in the early 20th century, ocean liners grew from being mere vehicles for transportation into environments in which thousands of people lived. Streamlined, they took on lines which influenced architecture both at sea and on land. Similarly, they also influenced the engineering design of the day. Just as a great building is art, so is a great ship.

Second, there is interior design. In order to attract passengers, particularly, well-to-do passengers, the ocean liners developed luxurious interiors. At first, the shipping lines sought to imitate the grand hotels ashore but over time they created their own styles. Furthermore, as ocean liners became symbols of national pride, they were filled with artistic treasures. Art Deco works from the 1930s French liner Normandie can now be found in major museums such as the Metropolitan Museum. Similarly, the interiors of Cunard Line's Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth showcased works from around the British Empire. The examples of ocean liner furniture and paneling included in the exhibition demonstrate the quality of this decoration.

Along the same lines, the shipping lines did not just rely on word-of-mouth to attract customers. In order to lure passengers aboard, they created posters and brochures advertising the ships. Whereas today's advertising relies primarily on glossy photographs, these advertisements often involved drawings and other artistic depictions of the ships and life at sea. In addition, the graphic layouts were often artistic.

The ocean liners also influenced fashion. During the Golden Age of Ocean Liner travel, people dressed while at sea. Elegant gowns, dinner suits, blazers and day wear were necessities for a first class voyage. Passengers displayed the latest designs and designers were inspired to create new designs. Examples of fashions worn aboard ship are included in the exhibition such as a Christian Dior suit worn by Marlene Dietrich as she arrived in New York aboard the Queen Mary in 1950 and a striking Lucien Lelong couture gown worn for the maiden voyage of Normandie in 1935.

At the same time, artists were inspired to create works featuring ocean liners. These included not just traditional maritime paintings of ships but also abstract works. Several Cubist-style works are included in the exhibition.

Filmmakers were also inspired by the ocean liner image. The exhibition presents clips from a number of major motion pictures that were either about or set on ocean liners.

Overall, the exhibition provides a good introduction to ocean liners and their artistic significance. Along the way, it introduces the major ships and it tells their story. The lighting and use of technology also enhance the exhibition.

Mary link
4/5/2019 04:03:26 pm

Great exhibition.


Comments are closed.

    Author

    Rich Wagner is a writer, photographer and artist.

    This blog presents reviews of art exhibitions and art collections as well as articles on art and art technique.

    Archives

    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017

    Categories

    All
    Alexander Calder
    American Art
    Anthem Of The Seas
    Art
    Art Analysis
    Art Classes
    Art Review
    Art Technique
    Asian Art
    Asia Society Museum
    Auguste Rodin
    Charcoal
    Claude
    Claude Monet
    Colin McDowell
    Contemporary Art
    Corner Of A Cafe Concert
    Cruise Ship Art Class
    Cruise Ship Art Collections
    Cunard
    David Hockney
    Drawing
    Edouard Manet
    Exhibition Review
    Fashion Illustration
    Fashion Week
    Fine Art
    Folk Art
    Frederic Remington
    French Art
    Guernsey Museum
    Gustav Klimt
    Henry James
    Holland America
    Illustration
    Impressionism
    Indian Art
    Irish Museum Of Modern Art
    James McNeill Whistler
    Jason Brooks
    John Constable
    John Singer Sargent
    Joseph Cornell
    Juan Gris
    Kenneth Paul Black
    La Grenouillere
    Leon Golub
    Lucian Freud
    Manet
    Margret Clarke
    Matisse
    Matisse In The Studio
    Maud Lewis
    Max Ernst
    Metropolitan Museum Of Art
    Milk Fixative
    Modern Art
    MOMA
    Morgan Library And Museum
    Museums
    National Gallery Of Scotland
    National Portrait Gallery
    Neue Galerie
    Ocean Liners
    Painting
    Pastel Portraits
    Pastels
    Perez Art Museum
    Peter Le Vasseur
    Picasso
    Portraiture
    Poussin
    Queen Mary 2
    Rembrandt
    Review
    Royal Academy
    Sculpture
    Self-analyis
    Sketching
    Smart Phone
    Stephen Card
    Susan Klibanoff
    Victoria & Albert Museum
    Watercolor Class
    Whitney Museum Of American Art
    William McTaggart



    RSS Feed

Beyondships Cruise Destinations
(Travel articles about and profiles of destinations). 
Beyondships Cruise Ship Profiles
(Information about cruise ships)
Beyondships Cruise Ship Pictorials and Reviews
(Photos, videos and reviews of cruise ships)
Beyondships LLC 
Notices
Privacy Policy 
Proudly powered by Weebly
  • Great Artists
  • Art Museums
  • Art by Rich Wagner
  • Art reviews index
  • Beyondships Art Blog
  • Beyondships Cruise Destinations
  • Original Art
  • Art by Valda
  • Beyondships cruise ships
  • Notices
  • Privacy Policy
  • London Art Roundup
  • AMB
  • Stephen Card Exhibition
  • Visiting Exhibitions