By: Jos Sances

Medium: 8 color Screenprint
Year: 2015
Image Size: 36 × 18 inches
Edition of 11

Mariners, Renegades, and Castaways by Jos Sances revisits the brutal realities of nineteenth-century whaling through the lens of contemporary critique. The hand-colored woodcut is divided into two panels: above, a crew of sailors flenses a whale amid the grim choreography of industrial labor; below, a majestic ship heaves on a turbulent sea, its rigging and flags rendered with extraordinary precision. Sances transforms the historical imagery of whaling into a meditation on capitalism, conquest, and ecological exploitation—its title echoing the divided loyalties of those who both serve and resist empire. The artist’s intricate linework and layered symbolism reveal his ongoing dialogue between human industry and the natural world.