Rock at Sea

Rock at Sea — Raymond Jonson. 1920–1922.

Medium: oil on canvas. Dimensions: Unframed: 88.9 x 104.2 cm (35 x 41 in.).

Collection record: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

The radically stylized tendencies in Rock at Sea were motivated by Jonson’s earlier work as an avant-garde scenic and lighting designer for the esteemed Chicago Little Theatre. Inspired by the jagged coast of Ogunquit, Maine, the painting’s visionary rendering of nature embodies the artist’s long-standing interest in communicating mystical concepts. Later, Jonson would move to Albuquerque, New Mexico, and co-found the Transcendental Painting Group, an association of artists dedicated to expressing the imaginative and spiritual realms through abstract art.

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.