Ivan Aivazovsky

Over half of Ivan Aivazovsky’s 6,000 paintings are maritime subjects; the most enduringly powerful are his turbulent seascapes that made him a success in the late Russian Empire. As a momentum for change grew in late-19th-century Russia, Aivazovsky’s technical prowess and prolific output remained tied to his successful formula. His attachment to Romanticism remained especially apparent in his paintings of storm-tossed vessels dwarfed by natural grandeur, while his patriotic attachment to the Russia of old remained apparent in his paintings of naval victories. A younger generation of Russian artists, who engaged more creatively with a changing world, quickly eclipsed Aivazovsky in importance, but the market for his work remains buoyant to this day and his best seascapes still communicate a raw energy. (The Art Story)