Dreamboat. Oil seascape painting by South African artist Jeremy Vanderwant

Dreamboat is the second in a series of similarly coloured seascapes. Inspired by the colour impressions the artist experienced as a younger man living near the Knysna lagoon in the Western cape province of South Africa, the painting is a fantasy about sailing off into the blue. An escape from the mundane. A peaceful work about the artist’s dream of one day joining his brother on a small yacht to travel the oceans of the world. Painted during the pandemic years (2021) when travel was impossible and the whole world yearned for peace, tranquility and above all escape from the harsh lockdown conditions imposed on the people of South Africa. The deep blues used in the painting have special meaning for the artist. Blue and white were the childhood favourites of the painter’s habit of visualising magic and miracles. Paintings like this ‘dreamboat’ are a part of how Jeremy pulls his life and energy forwards by imagining things the way they should be. It is a spiritual endeavour to bring the realm of dreams and wishes to life and make them real. The artmaking becomes a type of magic spell or a prayer that pulls the art maker towards the dream set out in canvas and paint.

Dreamboat is an oil painting on canvas measuring 61 centimetres by 42 centimetres. It is in a private collection in Johannesburg, South Africa.