Boat in Sand, 1960
Christopher Pratt, Boat in Sand, 1961, serigraph on paper (working proof), 42 x 75.2 cm, The Rooms, St. John’s.
Boat in Sand marked a turning point in Christopher Pratt’s career. Only his second serigraph (following Haystacks in December, 1960), it was selected for the 4th Biennial Exhibition of Canadian Art held by the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, launching him nationally. But its deeper significance lies in how it encapsulates themes Pratt would explore for decades.
“As a sailor,” Pratt once said, “I have a feeling for the boat in the water, a verb. As a painter I have a feeling for the boat as an object, a noun.” Boat in Sand holds both—stilled yet imbued with the memory of movement. Pratt returned to the theme of boats throughout his career, not merely as objects but as symbols of tradition and resilience. “When I was growing up, boats were far more important than cars and trucks in rural Newfoundland,” he said. “They symbolized our way of life.”
Christopher Pratt, My Sixty-One, 1988, serigraph on paper (A/P), 57 x 102 cm, The Rooms, St. John's.
Here, a beached boat rests in shallow sand, isolated and unmoving. The scene is pared down to essentials: clean lines, muted colours, and a composition that suspends time. The vessel—grounded yet intact—evokes both a past utility and a present stillness. This boat becomes a symbol of not just maritime life, but also a way of being in Newfoundland that was altering in the early 1960s. Although he did not intend Boat in Sand as a political symbol, Pratt created it amid the erosion of the province’s traditional, self-sufficient way of life, as fishing and local trade gave way to highways, hydro projects, and new suburban development. Boat in Sand acts as a subtle elegy, strengthened by the inclusion of a tiny crucifix carved into the boat.
Aesthetically, Boat in Sand shows Pratt at the threshold of his mature style. The work already reveals the tension he would mine throughout his career: between movement and stillness, between the remembered and the real, and between what is lost and what endures. From beached skiffs to sail-like structures and dreamlike yachts, Pratt’s boat images are precisely composed and strikingly still—even when adrift at sea. Often unpeopled, they become metaphors for solitude, endurance, and inner direction. At the same time, they reflect his admiration for the skills of the sailor and the enduring pull of the sea in Newfoundland life.
His later works—such as My Sixty-One, 1988—build on this lifelong connection. Referring to a 61-foot, custom C&C yacht that he dreamed of owning, the title alone suggests something personal: the boat tied up here is remembered not just as an object, but as part of the artist’s identity. A quiet symmetry exists between Boat in Sand and My Sixty-One. Both feature boats at rest, suspended in time, static but poised. Yet they come from different periods of his career—one at the outset of artistic self-definition, the other from a place of reflection. Between them flows a lifelong meditation on the elemental relationships between people, boats, and the environments that enfold them both.
Gallery
Christopher Pratt, Gros Morne (At Portland Creek), 1960, oil on Plywood, 91 x 91.5 cm, The Rooms, St. John’s.
Christopher Pratt, Gros Morne (At Portland Creek), 1961, serigraph on paper (working proof), 42 x 75.2 cm, The Rooms, St. John’s
Christopher Pratt, Woman at a Dresser, 1964, oil on hardboard, 67.2 x 77.5 cm, McMichael Canadian Art Collection, Kleinburg, Ontario
Christopher Pratt, The Lynx, 1965, Serigraph on paper, 51.8 x 76.2 cm, The Rooms, St. John’s
Christopher Pratt, House in August, 1969, oil on board, 44.5 x 62.2 cm, Currier Museum of Art, New Hampshire
Christopher Pratt, Institution, 1973, oil on Masonite, 76.2 x 76.2 cm, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
Christopher Pratt, Spring at My Place, 1985, serigraph, 50.6 x 95.7 cm, The Rooms, St. John’s
Christopher Pratt, Christmas Eve at 12 O’Clock, 1995, lithograph on paper (A/P VI), 25.8 x 28.5 cm, The Rooms, St. John’s
Christopher Pratt, Deer Lake: Junction Brook Memorial, 1999, oil on canvas, 114.5 x 305 cm, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
Christopher Pratt, Driving to Venus: On the Burgeo Road, 2000, oil on hardboard, 101.6 x 165.1 cm, Private collection
Christopher Pratt, After the Cold War: Argentia Approach, 2008, oil on canvas, 152.4 x 177.8 cm, Private collection
From left to right: Christopher Pratt, Winter Suite 1: West Fall Evening, 2009, oil on board, 91.4 x 104.1 cm, private collection; Christopher Pratt, Winter Suite 2: North Winter Night, 2009, oil on board, 91.4 x 104.1 cm, private collection; Christopher Pratt, Winter Suite 3: East Spring Morning, 2009, oil on board, 91.4 x 104.1 cm, private collection; Christopher Pratt, Summer 1/1 4: South Summer Noon, 2009, oil on board, 91.4 x 104.1 cm, private collection.