The Steamship Historical Society of America

SSHSA had a very successful response from our first ever International Photo and Art Contest. SSHSA had dozens and dozens of applicants with submission on a wide variety of formats for both amateur artists and professionals. Subject matter was focused on three primary areas:1 - Powerful Ships; 2 - Legendary Passengers; 3 - Hardworking Crews.

Click on the PDF at the bottom of the screen below to see the visual selections of the top choices by our juding panel.

The artists' biographies are listed here:

  HARLEY CROSSLEY                                                          Grand Prize Winner Queen Elizabeth 2-Final Home Port Departure (oil)Southampton, 2009  

Born in Southampton, England, within sight of the docks, Harley Crossley has always had an affinity for ships.  His first job was in an ocean terminal during the final days of trans-Atlantic travel.  It was here that he first sold his sketches of the large ocean liners to members of their crews.  Over a period of time, Harley developed his unique technique of painting in oils with knives and became an acknowledged expert in this field.  He has been a frequent contributor to art magazines as well as an artist member of the Fine Art Trade Guild.  A professional artist for most of his life, painting land and seascapes as well as ships, Harley has spent the last fifteen years travelling on cruise ships all over the world, demonstrating his painting technique and lecturing about passenger liners. 

When he first heard that the final departure of the QE2 from Southampton would take place at night, Harley was, like many others, deeply disappointed.  However, portraying this historic occasion as a night time scene enabled him to paint a more dramatic picture and is a fine example of the detail achieved though the use of knives.  Amongst the artist’s most recent commissions is one from Cunard for the official portrait of their new ship Queen Elizabeth, to be displayed in the ship’s main lobby.  Harley is also finishing work on a book of paintings due to be published this autumn by Amberley Publishing, UK.

 ERIC PEER                                                                           Second Place  Tandem Crossing-Queen Elizabeth 2October 2008 

Eric lives with his wife Angie in Green Brook, New Jersey.  He works as a chemical engineer and enjoys photography as a hobby.  An ocean liner enthusiast since reading “A Night to Remember” in junior high school, Eric was lucky enough to be aboard the QE2 for her last westbound crossing in 2008.

 JOHN HAMMA                                                                    Third Place  Queen Mary at DawnJune 2006  

John Hamma is a Board Member of SSSHA and also an active member of the SSHSA SoCal Chapter.  He was born and raised in New York City, and interested in ships since his aunt sailed to Europe aboard the Queen Mary in 1950.  John visited the Hudson River piers during the 1950s and 1960s as often as possible, photographing the great liners and also boarding them for pre-sailing visits (that used to be possible!).  He went on to study naval architecture at the University of Michigan and post graduate studies in mechanical and naval engineering at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts.  He completed a twenty-year career as an Engineering Duty Officer in the U.S. Navy and is currently active in consulting work to the maritime industry in San Diego, California.  John has been an SSHSA member since 1968, and a member of the Board of Directors since 2009. 

 FRED BOOM                                                                        Fourth Place  M.S. Marathon (oil)  

MS Nedlloyd Bahrein Ganache  (watercolor)                      Honorable Mention

 

Netherlands painter Fred Boom attended the Amsterdam School for Marine Engineers in 1959 and became an engineer for the Dutch Steamship Company, sailing on both freighters and passenger ships.  Spending most of his time in the Caribbean and South America, Fred also had occasion to visit the Gulf of Mexico and the east coast of the United States.  By 1971, Fred accepted a job ashore, having had his fill of sailing the world, eventually retiring in 1987.  The artist is a self-taught painter who has painted his entire life. Since retirement, Fred spends his time painting maritime images, never forgetting his roots in the Merchant Navy. 

 JOHN FRYANT                                                                    Fifth Place  Time Traveler – The Idlewild and the Belle  

John Fryant’s fifth-place winning entry represents the Belle of Louisville as she looked at the time of her maiden voyage in 1915 and as she looks at present.  This Ohio artist spent his career in civil service, designing travel and static exhibits, illustrations and graphics for the Department of Defense in Washington, DC.  A contributor to SSHSA’s Steamboat Bill, John designed the book covers for “Farewell Old Mount Washington,” “The Stateliest Ship,” and “Steamboats on the Muskingum” during his years of membership. He is also the recipient of the 1994 Stanton Award for riverboat plans service.

  ROBERT C. SEMLER     Return to New York  Sixth Place New York, 2002  

Follow the Leader                                                                  Honorable Mention  

Born and raised in southern New Jersey near the Delaware River, Robert studied figure and portrait painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  After a long career in publishing and illustration, he now paints full time.  He is a signature member and past president of the American Society of Marine Artists, a member of the NY Society of Illustrators, the Portrait Society of America and the US Coast Guard Art Program.

 

For several years Robert has been involved in a series of paintings dedicated to America’s last great luxury liner, the S.S. United States, and is a longtime member of the S.S. United States Conservancy.  The painting “Return to New York” is just one in a series he has completed of the “Big U.”  It depicts the artist’s thoughts of how she might appear if returned to her home port at some point in the future, possibly a museum, aided by tugs from Moran Towing.    Robert’s studio and home are located on the Sun Coast in Bradenton, Florida. 

 CHRISTOPHER JENKINS                                                Seventh Place NYC Tug (oil) 

For several years, Florida artist Christopher Jenkins has focused his efforts on oil paintings of transportation machines from the historical period ranging from 1900 to 1960.  The artist’s main objective is to capture the essence of those machines and impart a sense of energy and motion.  The opportunity to paint billowing clouds of steam and smoke make steam-powered vessels among Christopher’s favorite subjects.  Moderate amounts of detail and uncluttered backgrounds are features of this painter’s work. 

  CHARLIE BIESER                                                               Eighth Place  Lake Michigan Steamboat Race  (oil) (City of South Haven & Eastland) 

Growing up in landlocked Dayton, Ohio, Charles Bieser was infected with his maritime interest by an early exposure to Cincinnati’s big white confection ISLAND QUEEN and a Windsor to Duluth passage on NORONIC just weeks before her destruction.  He joined the Steamship Historical Society in 1964, over the years serving as “Duluth to Niagra” editor, chairman for national meetings in Milwaukee, Detroit and Sandusky, and for more than ten years as SSHSA Director.  Charlie recently started painting after selling the cruise agency he started in 1985, and this painting of the CITY OF SOUTH HAVEN vs. EASTLAND is his first attempt with oils.

 

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Membership Annual Meeting to be held inconjuction with NASOH, CAMM, NMHS & SSHSA Meetings at University of Connecticut &  Mystic, Connecticut. SSHSA Annual General Meeting begins at 9AM Eastern at UConn. Please see previous year's official ballot below (click on PDF to download) or refer to this site again at the end of March for the 2010 ballot.

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