The Raft of the Medusa

E44789

The Raft of the Medusa is a monumental 1818–1819 Romantic oil painting by Théodore Géricault depicting shipwrecked survivors adrift at sea, renowned for its dramatic realism and political commentary.


Statements (50)
Predicate Object
instanceOf Romantic painting
oil painting
painting
artist Théodore Géricault
basedOn 1816 Méduse shipwreck
wreck of the French naval frigate Méduse
city Paris
collection Musée du Louvre
completionDate 1819
countryOfOrigin France
creator Théodore Géricault
criticizes incompetence of the French monarchy
depicts a makeshift raft
hope of rescue
people adrift at sea
shipwreck survivors
suffering and desperation
the aftermath of a shipwreck
the wreck of the French frigate Méduse
exhibitionHistory Salon of 1819
firstPresentedAt Paris Salon of 1819
genre Romanticism
hasInfluenced 19th-century French painting
later Romantic artists
hasPart corpses in the foreground
figure waving a cloth toward a distant ship
pyramidal composition of figures
stormy sea and sky
height approximately 491 cm
historicalContext Bourbon Restoration in France
inception 1818
inspiredBy political scandal surrounding the Méduse
languageOfWork visual art
location Louvre Museum
materialUsed canvas
oil paint
medium oil on canvas
movement Romanticism
notableFor dramatic realism
innovative composition
large scale
political commentary
unflinching depiction of human suffering
orientation landscape
theme despair
hope
human vulnerability
political critique
survival
width approximately 716 cm

Referenced by (2)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Denon Wing
housesArtwork
Louvre Museum
notableWork

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