Jamestown Settlement may be known for its ships, fort, and Powhatan Indian village, but the living history museum will soon host a celebration of American marine art that visitors–those artistically inclined and otherwise-will also be able to enjoy.
From March 7 through April 26, the American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA) will hold its 18th National Exhibition at the Jamestown Settlement, the site of America’s first colony, on the banks of the James River. The exhibition, which is held every three years in different locations across the country, shows off a wide variety of marine artwork including paintings, carvings, and sculptures.
Kicking off the exhibition on March 7 will be plein-air event, also known as a “paint out,” at the settlement’s pier, where replicas of three 1607 ships–the Godspeed, Susan Constant, and Discovery–are docked. Jamestown Settlement visitors will be able to watch as artists capture the beauty of the ships against the backdrop of the James (and tour the ships, too).
Click through the images below for some examples of the artworks on display:
“Before Sunset” by Leonard Mizereck, Fellow ASMA 
“Drifting in Light Wind” by William Davis, Fellow ASMA 
“Good Things Come” by Lisa Egeli, Fellow ASMA 
“Nightwatch” by Darrell Davis 
“Weatherly, 1962” by Russ Kramer, Fellow ASMA 
“Setting out to Fish,” John Singer Sargent. Corcoran Collection, National Gallery of Art 
“Duel of the Ironclads” by Patrick O’Brien, ASMA 
Courtesy of Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
Museum visitors can also listen to two public lectures presented by ASMA artists, “Painting History” by Patrick O’Brien and Sarah Cash’s “The Marine Paintings of John Singer Sargent.” O’Brien, an award-winning painter who focuses on the classic age of sail, will speak about the Civil War duel of the
ironclads as well as the research that informs his own paintings. Cash, an author, painter, and museum curator, will talk about Sargent’s marine oils and watercolors.
The ASMA’s Nicolas Fox says that the Jamestown Settlement is a special location for the society because of its historical importance and the subject matter it offers ASMA painters. What’s more, some of the painters have personal connections to the Bay.
“Many of America’s greatest painters, more than a few of them in the American Society of Marine Artists, hail from the Chesapeake Bay,” says Fox. “The society is dedicated to bringing the rich culture, nature and maritime heritage of the Chesapeake region to the world, with local artists like Society Fellows John Barber, Peter Egeli, and Society President Lisa Egeli, depicting its legendary skipjacks and breathtaking vistas.”
In addition to its national stops and visit to the Jamestown Settlement, the exhibition will also be presented at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels. After all, as Fox says, “the more we share, the more we ensure a future for American marine art and culture.”
To learn more about the ASMA in Jamestown, visit https://www.historyisfun.org/
-Laura Adams Boycourt
