Extreme Nature: Two Landscape Paintings From the Age of Enlightenment

This installation welcomes a newly discovered French masterpiece to SAM’s collection, Shipwreck off the Coast of Alaska (1806) by Louis-Philippe Crépin. Born in Paris, Crépin (1772–1851) was a specialist in marine painting. Many of his works are in the National Maritime Museum in Paris; this is likely the first painting by Crépin in an American museum. Its rendering of a tragic shipwreck that took place in 1786 transcends standard marine painting conventions and stands alone within the artist’s oeuvre, achieving a peak of clarity, drama, and pathos.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website