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COLLAGE
COLLAGE

COLLAGE

Geography Prince Edward Island
Dimensions46.4 x 64 cm
Object numberHF.11.02.04 A-B
DescriptionRectangular depiction (a) of the Brigantine, W.B. Dean. The ship is pieced together in collage style with each piece painted, making the entire piece resemble a painting. The ship has light brown sails and a black hull. Three flags fly from the masts; a Red Ensign flies at the stern, a central flag appears to bear the ship's name and what appears to be a Union Jack towards the bow. Framed (b) in Dark brown wood with mitred corners.





Narrative

The W. B. Dean, a 120 ton brigantine, was built and launched around October of 1852 from the shipyard owned by the D. Pigot & Brothers. Island born brothers, Montague and David, regularly loaded their ships with Island timber, sailed south and sold both the ship and contents before returning to P.E.I to repeat this process. The W.B. Dean sold after construction was complete. David captained the brigantine to its new owner.

There is a famous family legend of the Pigot brothers encountering pirates during one of their trips. The outcome was positive and all that was stolen, when the ship was boarded, was a revolver. Thankfully, piracy wasn't a common occurrence in the 1800s, but it was a risk that came with making a career on the open water. Collage is used to recreate a traditional style of ship painting. The individual pieces, painted and applied separately, create depth in the artwork giving it a 3-D quality.

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