As an official war artist to the Admiralty during the Second World War, Eurich painted the war effort at home, epic maritime engagements, and stories of survival at sea. Although he did not witness action himself, he received confidential intelligence from the Ministry of Information. Living near Southampton, he was close to the centre of naval operations, studied the ships in harbour, and interviewed men involved in the conflict. Eurich’s war paintings were at once works of imagination and historical records: his distinctive vision of the sea merged with thoroughly researched depictions of the events.

When he started working for the War Artists Advisory Committee, Eurich expressed his eagerness that ‘the traditional sea paintings of Van de Velde & Turner should be carried on to enrich and record our heritage’. His admiration for Turner is obvious here, in the painterly depiction of the foaming waves and the deep night sky. Like Turner, Eurich was interested in the structure and materiality of water, and capturing atmospheric light effects upon the sea.