Sailboat on a Raging Sea

In this drawing, made during a trip to Le Havre to observe the motion of the waves, Théodore Géricault showed his love of action and the technique of animated brushwork he used to express it. He intensified the dramatic effect of the ship pitching in the waves by applying accents of white gouache highlighting to the tumultuous waves, the edges of the storm-tossed ship's sails and riggings, and bits of the cloudy sky.



Géricault made this drawing around 1818, when he was working out the composition of his masterpiece, The Raft of the Medusa, by carefully studying and sketching ships and water conditions.



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