Often referred to as the leading marine artist of the 19th century, William Leopold Wyllie was, and indeed remains, immensely popular with collectors.
He was a great admirer of Whistler and Turner and sought to evoke a similar sense of atmosphere through sensitive observation of light and weather conditions.
He was also extremely engaged with his subject matter at an academic level, having studied the history of ship building alongside his artistic training at the Royal Academy Schools, in order to better inform his paintings.