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1858

Shipwreck

Edward Moran

American (born England), 1829 - 1901

The eldest in a large family of artists, Edward Moran came to the United States from England in the 1840s and settled in Philadelphia. Representing the mid-century romantic taste for blockbuster marines, Moran followed the lead of J.M.W. Turner, whose work he would have known from engravings. Strong contrasts of light and dark, a swirling merger of sea and sky, and a convincing grasp of natural detail contribute to a sensational effect of chaos and danger in this early work. Moran enjoyed a long and distinguished career as a painter of historical marines.

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Edward Moran, Shipwreck, 1858 | Philadelphia Museum of Art