After the Deluge

Adopted by Dr and Mrs John Vardon

In the Bible, the Book of Genesis tells of a terrible flood that wiped out all life on Earth, except for those who were saved in Noah’s ark. The torrential rains lasted a proverbial 40 days and nights. Watts depicts the moment that the sun reappears with its warm, restorative rays reflecting across the waters.

The painting evokes the atmospheric landscapes of English painter J M W Turner, who Watts exhibited alongside in London at the start of his career. Watts rejects the traditional symbols used to covey the biblical narrative, including the ark and dove. Instead, his focus on the spectacle of the rising sun recalls avant-garde European painting in the 1880s.