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.
Among Eurich’s first commissions for the WAAC were British coastal scenes. Whitby was a famous fishing port. This view conveys a sense of the familiar; the reassuring persistence of peacetime activities despite the upheavals of the war. Whitby’s fishermen were also involved in the war effort: in case of emergency, they immediately put to sea.