Picture Raft “Jellyfish”, Theodore Gericault

Description of the picture:

The raft of the Medusa is Jean-Louis Theodore Gericault. 1818-1819. Canvas, oil. 491×716

   “Raft "Jellyfish – famous canvas Theodore Gericault (1791-1824), which began the history of French romanticism.

   The plot is not invented by the artist; the picture tells of a shipwreck that happened with the ship “Medusa”. Countless passengers and crew escaped on a raft that was carried by sea for almost two weeks. People exhausted without food and drink, perished. A couple of times they saw them in the distance of the court, hoping they screamed at them, waving the surviving rags, but the ships passed by without noticing them. Hope for salvation died, strength melted. In the end, the ill-fated were found and raised to the rescue board. Fifteen of the 140 people who sailed on the Medusa survived.

   The canvas shook the French capital. So really no one has yet depicted death. The painting entered the Louvre in 1824.

   The picture was a response to the fierce reaction of society, outraged by the cowardice of the leaders of the marine expedition, which led to the death of more than a hundred sailors and passengers with families. The master managed to portray the whole tragedy of the situation.

   The creator does not give any hope for a successful ending to the situation. Raging sea, gloomy sky, hopelessness and a sense of impending catastrophe – these components of the plot add up to a languid atmosphere.

   It is clear that the painter, for the sake of the reliability of all the details of his own work, spent many hours in the morgues, also debated with doctors to find out what configurations were taking place in the human body, forced to starve and go without water for a long time.

   Work has become a hallmark of the master. For a long time causing ecstasy of criticism and undisguised enthusiasm of the public."