Painting entitled
"Shipwrecked Ships"
(1837) this is a typical expression of the work of the wing of Romanticism. In this stream the artist actually wants to reveal the flutter of his soul that swayed between the desire to live and declare the world (imagination) ideal and the real world is complicated and fragmented.of the adventurous adventures, artists tend to express dramatic, emotional, mysterious, and imaginary things.however, the artists of Romanticism often also work based on actual reality.
In this "Storm-Afflicted Ship" painting, it can be seen how Raden Saleh reveals a dramatic struggle, ie two ships in a massive storm in the middle of the ocean.the atmosphere seemed more pressing by the thick dark clouds and the tallest waves that destroyed one of the ships.from the top corner, a glimmer of sunlight that bounced toward the waves roll, this put more pressure on the dramatic atmosphere.
Although Raden Saleh is in the frame of Romanticism, but the themes of his paintings are varied, dramatic, and have a high vital elan.Raden Saleh's works are not only limited to landscapes, but also the lives of humans and animals grappling with tragedy. For example, painting "Een Boschbrand" (Forest Fire). "Een Overstrooming op Java" (Flood in Java), "Een Jagt op Java" (Hunting in Java). "Gevangenneming van Diponegoro" (Diponegoro Arrest).nevertheless, Raden Saleh has not yet fully (fully) struggled to create Indonesian painting, but the life impulses expressed by his themes are very inspiring for the whole society, especially the native-born educated on the rise of nationalism.
Noto Soeroto in his essay "Bij het 100ste Geboortejaar van Raden Saleh" (The 100th anniversary of Raden Saleh's birth), in 1913, reveals that in times of national awakening, the Javanese are encouraged to mobilize their own abilities.however, the point of light in the field of culture (art) is not common. Therefore, the cleanliness of Raden Saleh is expected to arouse the attention of the Javanese in the national arts.
