Sea Ghost

Finnur Jónsson studied visual art in Denmark and Germany, where he was strongly influenced by international movements and styles, particularly geometric abstraction and Expressionism. After returning to Iceland following his studies in Germany, Finnur travelled extensively around the country with the painter Tryggvi Magnússon. He became deeply captivated by the beauty of the highlands, and these journeys had a lasting impact on his landscape painting. Finnur’s landscapes are not conventional representations of the interior nor idealised depictions of nature. Instead, they capture the mystery of the wilderness, often interwoven with folktales and cultural memory.

In the painting Sea Ghost, the landscape functions as a kind of backdrop or stage, while the subject matter is drawn from folklore. Sea ghosts are spirits believed to dwell in or near the ocean. Numerous tales describe them emitting eerie sounds—shrieking, wailing, and howling—and they were considered a serious threat. The painting is rich in contrasts: light and colour are heightened, and the shadowy apparition at the centre of the composition is bathed in an intense, almost unnatural light, creating a sense of unease. The work is fantastical and even poetic, painted in an Expressionist style in which dense brushstrokes generate a powerful atmosphere and the colours evoke a dreamlike sense of mystery. The subject may serve as a reminder of death—and the transience of life—a theme that was particularly prevalent in European art of the 1930s.

Stories of bodies washed ashore are also common in Icelandic folklore. Such accounts refer to human remains found along beaches and coastlines, often connected to drowned sailors. People were warned not to walk near shores where deaths had occurred, for fear of encountering a sea ghost. In earlier times, specific rules governed how one should respond upon discovering a body washed ashore. Most importantly, the body was not to be left unattended. It was considered essential to care for it and ensure burial as soon as possible, so that the deceased would not haunt the finder. Robbing the body was strictly forbidden, as it was believed to disturb the eternal rest of the dead, causing the spirit to return as a sea ghost in search of revenge.