Seascape - Macduff

Artist James McBey (Newburgh, Scotland, 1883 - 1959)

Date1927

Mediumoil on canvas

ClassificationsMcBey

DimensionsOverall: Height: 36 cm, Width: 70.2 cm
Frame: Height: 52 cm, Width: 86.4 cm

AcquisitionPresented in 1960 by Mrs Marguerite McBey.

Object numberABDAG002278

Keywords

About MeJames McBey was born at Foveran, near the coastal village of Newburgh and must have had a very strong feeling for the sea. When he sailed to Morocco with a friend he experienced a heavy storm and wrote "the ship is sliding down one green mountain to bury her length in the next". McBey must have known Macduff Harbour very well as a traditional fishing centre. It is very attractive on a sunny day and the local scenery is beautiful, but his painting shows the sense of danger on a stormy night. It seems to be late at night and the fishermen, who are having trouble, may have followed the lighthouse beam for safety.