This striking view of the Scottish waterway near Greenock on the Firth of Clyde is full of notable details making the location come alive two centuries after it was painted. Paintings by Robert Salmon are desirable the world over, due to the impressive amount of historic subject matter and detail presented through artistic composition and light qualities of the highest order.
The blend of multiple subjects brought together in a composition backed by the dramatic heights of the coastal hills, the elevations near Kilcreggan between Helensburgh and Dunoon, is made perfect with the glowing variation of light Salmon casts through the sky. Fisherfolk prepare their sails and boat on the foreground rocks, north of the important port of Greenock. From this central waterway junction, several sea lochs are accessible, including nearby Gare Loch, Long Loch and Holy Loch, where much of the British World War II submarine forces where built and stationed. In this narrative scene 150 years prior, a large British cutter dominates, with another sailing near and other vessels under sail and waiting.
Salmon's superb rendering of the luminous cloudy sky with thin streaks slicing the sky shows the rare sunny calm of the location and day. His work with detailed for ground and fading depth is masterful, and easy to see where his artistic style influenced so many great American artists after him. His human portrayals, especially the barefoot woman holding the water jug and the man with the anchor rope, complete the scene.
