Review: An Exhibition of Marine Paintings by Stephen Card at the Windjammer II Gallery, Fairmont Hamilton Princess

Stephen Card has produced a major exhibition of 30 oil paintings at the Windjammer II Gallery in the Fairmont Hamilton Princess.

It has been two years since his last show at the gallery and judging by the quality and scale of the exhibition his acuity seems ever sharper. The Bermudian fine artist of international repute is frequently commissioned by cruise lines such as Cunard and Holland America, but this exhibition of exacting standard can be enjoyed right here on the Island.

These world-class paintings are meticulous and masterful with an ineffable power to engage and bring alive the romance of the high sea. From sail to steam, he unites us with an era of pioneering discovery and pleasure travel.

The painting of the yacht America shows it arriving at Spithead accompanied by the yacht-cutter Lavrock, as they dart through the Solent, sails like arrows. Osborne House in Isle of Wight is in the background. It is an eye-catching painting of perfect poise and balance. White Star Line’s Atlantic Ferry and R.M. S Olympic, are pictured distantly, steaming from the horizon and is similarly enjoyable. These miniatures provide a delectable visual entrée for the feast of a show to come.

He depicts the historic Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition in Shackleton’s Endurance on the Weddell Sea 1915. It’s a beautifully lit depiction of the ship in the icy waters and sails — bathed in a warm glow of raw sienna that contrasts with the glacial coolness. There is no sign of the pack ice which would crush her later on their voyage. The evocative picture of Holland America Line’s Nieuw Amsterdam, set in an early 20th century Manhattan skyline, has a laid back air of sophistication that falls gently from the canvas and creates a fine mellow moment.

Bermuda-connected ships are a natural and fertile subject for the artist given the Island’s close bond with sea and shipbuilding and he commemorates this with many paintings that are indelibly part of Island folklore. The Shelly Bay-built clipper-barque Koh-I-Noor is in glorious full sail. The majestic Sea Venture, June 1609, is a gem: precious not least, because he portrays her also in full sail with an optimistic calm as she departs English shores on her voyage to Virginia. It is so removed from the catastrophic peril of her fateful demise usually portrayed in paintings and makes a thoughtful prequel to the Bermuda story.

Chauncey M Depew, formerly of the Hudson River Line, was used as a tender in Bermuda for 20 years from 1949. As an illustration of the detective work Stephen Card does, I read that he had originally painted it without the bridge by Anthony’s Nose Mountain. He discovered later the bridge that spanned the Hudson was built in 1926 and it was duly added to his painting. It is an effective addition and a strong diagonal compositional aid.

Bermuda Sleigh Ride — A Bermudian Whaler off St David’s c. 1885 is a bold painting. It is a departure from the pure marine art genre, with the addition of figures, and becomes genre painting of everyday life. It was an industry so important to Bermuda throughout the centuries and while the subject may be difficult for us now it is an important piece of social history. This break from convention gives the artist licence to explore a drama set off St David’s Head as a pilot gig and its six oarsmen ride high on a heavy ocean swell. A line ensnares the perpendicular fluke of a juvenile whale in the foreground. The figures are generally well modelled and there are some exquisite passages of painting too, which serve the tense narrative in a grand scale.

The moonlit SS America is a sensitive rendering using modulated light from the moon together with the warm glow of electric light that plays on the red double funnels. Fall River Lines Priscilla, in similar mode, is painted under a pink sunset — cabin lights glowing — and a trail of grey-violet smoke. I think the dramatic effect of these paintings create an added visual interest which assist the reading of the exhibition as a whole and ripe for further exploration.

The nautical theme of the exhibition is extended to take in three aeronautical paintings: two flying boats and the other, a KLM plane so high that the horizon is stripped away with a ship far below. In Bermuda Clipper, a Pan-American Airways plane takes of from the waters of the Great Sound. Here, there is an almost tangible motion as you feel the speed and turbulent air. In the background the Furness Line’s Monarch of Bermuda gracefully embarks from Hamilton, steering past Two Rock Passage.

The artist’s hand combines with his heart, displaying deft painterly touches in his maritime evocations from a life of observation at sea. Stephen Card was a ship’s captain and a former Bermuda Harbour Master. Painstaking research to ensure historical accuracy is a prerequisite of the genre, but beyond the technical excellence, marine artists have to contend with limited pictorial devices at their disposal such as the sea and sky and invent an imaginative variety of design and compositional devices. Stephen Card is an exemplar of such creativity. He achieves this by a thorough perspective, evidenced by the intricate patterning of the sea and further creating the illusion of distance with clouds.

These paintings are maritime theatre but it is their staging that makes them so successful. Every sea and sky he paints prepares the stage for the drama — without this ability — all the technical mastery of the ships would be in vain.

Stephen Card has served the sea well as a captain and the sea has served him as an artist. It is fitting that the Windjammer II Gallery is exhibiting this stunning show in the Fairmont Hamilton Princess. It compliments the gravitas of this grand hotel on the water. The commercial gallery is a valued addition to the arts in Bermuda since opening in 2008. Artists are provided the opportunity to be represented by its inspiring owner and artist, Sheilagh Head and the charismatic gallery manager, Danjou Anderson. The former has a gift for getting the most from the artists she chooses to represent.

As the hotel steps into a 21st century upgrade and Bermuda has prepared a bid for the America’s Cup in 2017 it would be wonderful if a victory could be marked by another triumphant return for Stephen Card at the Windjammer II Gallery.

Stephen Card is a master of maritime art and his exhibition revels in Bermuda’s rich seafaring history and it is a visit that is highly recommended. So join the riders of tides and set full sail across boundless seas to destinations unknown. You can be assured of a warm welcome.

The show runs until November 21 and the gallery can be found in the arcade of shops beyond the lobby of the hotel.