Robert Turner Ewell, a Coast Guard Veteran, a Shipbuilder, and a Norfolk, VA native was one who was inspired by the story of USS Monitor. In this episode of Beyond the Frame we'll explore the ways in which USS Monitor's story met aspects of Ewell's life and led him to create a work depicting the Ironclad in a style that is purely his own.

In Frank Vining Smith's ca 1900-40 oil painting, The Wild Gulf Stream,  we explore the artist's muse and his inspirations through his depiction of a singular large wave that fills his grand canvas. His life led him to the waters' edge time and time again, and in this blog we explore what it is about a wave that calls us, too.

This stunning portrait of a blue-collar, immigrant fisherman takes us on a voyage of “why’s” and “why not’s” that brings us back to the heart of our mission here at The Mariners’.

 In this episode of Beyond the Frame, we turn an eye to the past and to the present, examining the symbolic effects of war in this somber World War II painting by famous British Maritime Artist, Montague Dawson.

What our eyes and minds understand – at a distance- as literal, changes with each approaching step we take. What was the solid form of a fisherman in his boat, dissolves into thousands and thousands of fractals of light and color.

Art is fascinating in the way that it allows us to peer into the mind of an artist, see the world through their eyes, through the lens of their creativity. But there’s something very special about an artist allowing us to peek into their memory, especially a life changing one like this.

In looking at this work, the concept of connection comes to mind over and over. I thought about what connection means to me and my mind immediately went to technology – WiFi, cell service, texts, and email.

The title of this work, “Marine Totem with Osprey Nest”, carries a reverence. The idea of a totem invokes a spirituality, rooted in the indigenous belief of humankind’s kinship with nature. More secularly, this concept describes something that acts as a respected symbol.