Oil on Canvas
18″ x 14″
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Rembrandt’s only seascape, this masterpiece captures the heart-pounding moment from the Gospel of Mark (4:35–41): Jesus sleeps calmly in the stern of a storm-tossed fishing boat while his terrified disciples battle raging waves, frantic to keep the vessel from capsizing. One apostle even leans over the side, violently seasick from the chaos, as they desperately wake their Master, crying out in fear: “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”
In a flash of divine authority, Jesus rises and rebukes the wind and sea—”Peace! Be still!”—bringing instant calm. The miracle reminds us that even in life’s fiercest storms, faith can find peace in His presence, just as it does today when our own tempests arise.
Tragically, the original—measuring about 63″ x 50″—was stolen in 1990 from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in the largest art theft in history. It remains missing, with a $10 million reward still offered for its safe return.
I painted my version using the alla prima method: bold, direct brushwork applied wet-into-wet straight onto a premade canvas, no underpainting, to capture that raw energy and immediacy Rembrandt achieved in his youth. It was an exhilarating challenge for I only had a very small photo of the original and I had to use a magnifying glass to see the detail!