.png){kind=small}
RONNY MOORTGAT | Pamir on the Thames
Watercolour
34.5 x 59.5 cms, 13½" x 23½"
A beautiful original oil seascape painting by Ronny Moortgat. The Pamir, a four-masted barque, was initially built by Blohm & Voss of Hambrug in 1905 for German shipping company, F. Laeisz. The vessel was an impressive length of 375 foot, a beam of approximately 46 foot and a draught of 23.5 foot, with a steel hull and tonneage of 3,020 GRT.
Thoughout World War I, the Pamir lay dormant before it was returned to Germany and given to Italy as part of the war reparations. Interestingly, it was seized as a prize of war by New Zealand in 1941 whilst in Port Wellington. She later embarked on several voyages, with one of the last being a journey to London via Cape Horn in 1948. When she docked in Shadwell Basin, she attracted considerable media attention, particularly when Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip visited the ship. On August 10, 1957, the Pamir departed South America for Hamburg, carrying a cargo of barley. Two weeks later, the Passat followed on a similar route. Forty days out from Buenos Aires, the Pamir was struck by a hurricane and was lost at sea.
Ronny Moortgat is one of the foremost contemporary artists of marine painting. Following in the footsteps of the great maritime masters of the twentieth-century, he depicts his subjects with great discipline, capturing every minute detail of the vessels.
Moorgat's skill in portraying contemporary and historic ships with such accuracy, whilst also imbuing their unique spirit in his paintings, is due to his lifelong passion for the sea and all that sail on her. This passion was born from growing up by the River Schelde close to Antwerp, Europe's second largest port, and watching the hustle and bustle of the shipping from a very young age.
Classically trained in the studio of Willem Dolphyn in Antwerp, Moortgat has gone on to join the Belgian Society of Maritime Artists and the Royal Society of Marine Artists.
- Free shipping for artworks above £5,000 in the UK. For International customers please contact us for a shipping quote.
