Once again, Volanakis painted a scene of fishing with nets in the open sea in his own recognisable style and according to all the academic rules of the Munich School. There are no spontaneous brushstrokes, the atmosphere is enchanting, the perspective impeccable, the impression sensory, the poetic mood manifest, the composition perfectly harmonious and markedly theatrical. The human presence may be limited, but plays an important role in the painting, creating a sense of reality and competing with the emphatically accentuated sea.
The painting’s individual pictorial elements are characterised by the painter’s unique narrative skill and his highly descriptive style.
Under the golden-grey light of the sky, in the midst of the blue-yellow surface of the vast sea, a fishing boat with tied sails appears anchored offshore. On the deck, three fishermen are pulling the nets towards the boat and behind them another one is fishing. Part of the land can be seen in the distance, as well as a lone sailboat sailing away.