Gouache Painting Sisters of the Mersey Ships RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania
Dennis Green (1942–2024) Sisters of the Mersey: RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania, circa 2015
A Signed Maritime Gouache Celebrating Cunard and Liverpool’s Working River
Highlights
• Original signed gouache by Liverpool-associated maritime artist Dennis Green.
• A commemorative panorama uniting the Cunard sister ships Lusitania and Mauretania.
• Liverpool’s historic waterfront and Royal Liver Building establish the Mersey setting.
• Working tugboats introduce movement, scale and an important human dimension.
• Precise naval detail balanced by expressive handling of water, smoke and changing light.
• Painted on paper backed with board during the final decade of the artist’s life.
• Provenance includes the 2015 Wirral Society of Arts Members’ Exhibition.
• Displayed in a gold-tone wooden frame with double cream mounting and protective glass.
Introduction
Dennis Green brings the River Mersey’s maritime history vividly to life in this expansive gouache depicting RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania, the celebrated sister ships of the Cunard Line.
The liners advance across calm water beneath a sky illuminated by gold, violet and pale blue light. Their four-funnel profiles dominate the river, while the Royal Liver Building and Liverpool waterfront rise across the distance.
Green gives equal narrative importance to the working tugboats surrounding the ships. Although modest in scale beside the ocean liners, these purposeful vessels communicate the organisation, labour and practical seamanship required to sustain Liverpool’s role as an international port.
Painted around 2015, Sisters of the Mersey is an atmospheric homage to Cunard, Liverpool and the often-overlooked working craft of the river.
Catalogue Details
Artist: Dennis Green
Life dates: 1942–2024
Title: Sisters of the Mersey: RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania
Date: Circa 2015
Nationality: British
Regional association: Liverpool and the Wirral
Medium: Gouache on paper backed with board
Genre: Maritime painting and historical reconstruction
Principal ships: RMS Lusitania and RMS Mauretania
Tugboats traditionally identified as: SS Alexandra, SS Hornby and SS Trafalgar
Location: River Mersey with the Liverpool waterfront
Signature: Signed by Dennis Green
Presentation: Double cream mounted and glazed
Frame: Gold-tone wooden frame
Catalogue Note
The composition is structured around the parallel profiles of Lusitania and Mauretania. Their immense dark hulls extend across the river, while the repeated red-and-black funnels create an immediately recognisable Cunard silhouette.
Green’s use of gouache allows him to move between opacity and delicacy. Firm passages of colour define the ships’ hulls, superstructures and funnels, while thinner and more fluid applications describe reflections, atmospheric smoke and the soft transition of light across the sky.
The palette is built upon contrasts. Deep sea green, slate grey, black and muted brown communicate the industrial substance of ships and harbour, while gold, violet and pale blue introduce the fleeting light of dawn or evening.
Liverpool appears not merely as a backdrop but as an essential participant in the composition. The Royal Liver Building rises above the waterfront, linking the ships with the city whose prosperity and international identity were inseparable from the Mersey.
The three tugboats traditionally identified as SS Alexandra, SS Hornby and SS Trafalgar establish a second, smaller rhythm across the foreground. Their smoke, wakes and directional movement prevent the scene from becoming static.
The precise identification of every tug has not been supported by surviving documentary evidence available during the present research. Their names are therefore recorded as traditional or supplied identifications.
Green’s composition is best understood as a commemorative reconstruction of Liverpool’s maritime inheritance rather than documentary evidence of a single recorded gathering of all five vessels.
The Ships
Lusitania and Mauretania were conceived as sister ships for the Cunard Line at a time when British, German and other European operators competed intensely for transatlantic prestige.
RMS Lusitania was launched in 1906. Her turbine machinery, exceptional speed and luxurious interiors placed her among the most technologically advanced passenger ships of the Edwardian period.
On 7 May 1915, Lusitania was torpedoed by a German submarine off the coast of Ireland. The loss of 1,198 lives made her sinking one of the defining maritime tragedies of the First World War.
RMS Mauretania entered service in 1907. At approximately 790 feet long, she was the world’s largest liner when completed and soon became renowned for her speed. She held the Blue Riband for the fastest Atlantic passage for approximately 22 years.
Mauretania also served during the First World War before returning to civilian passenger service. Her longer career allowed her to become one of the most familiar and admired liners of the early 20th century.
Green portrays the sisters together in their prime. Rather than dwelling upon Lusitania’s later destruction or Mauretania’s eventual retirement, he concentrates upon their shared engineering ambition, visual splendour and connection with Liverpool.
The two vessels were operated by the Cunard Line. The title Cunard White Star belongs to the later corporate merger and is not historically appropriate to their original Edwardian service.
The Artist
Dennis Green was a British painter whose work reflects a sustained interest in ships, port activity and the maritime heritage of Liverpool and the Wirral.
He developed a detailed visual language suited to marine subjects. Hull construction, funnels, rigging and harbour architecture are handled with precision, while sky, smoke and water are allowed greater painterly freedom.
This combination enabled Green to create works that are descriptive without appearing diagrammatic. His ships possess identifiable structures, but they remain embedded within changing weather, water and light.
Green is recorded as a member of the Wirral Society of Arts and exhibited Sisters of the Mersey at the society’s Members’ Exhibition in 2015, according to the supplied provenance.
The painting was completed during the final decade of his life. It brings together the Cunard liners, Liverpool waterfront and supporting tugboats within a composition that reflects his wider engagement with the working history of the Mersey.
Provenance
• Private Liverpool maritime collection.
• Exhibited at the Wirral Society of Arts Members’ Exhibition, 2015, according to the supplied provenance.
• Subsequently acquired through a notable auction house.
• Exhibited at the Middle Shire Museum Maritime Exhibition, 2025, according to the supplied provenance.
• Professionally researched, curated and catalogued by Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®.
Dimensions
Framed width: 80 cm / 31.5 inches
Framed height: 65.5 cm / 25.8 inches
Framed depth: 2.5 cm / 1 inch
All measurements are approximate.
Condition Report
The gouache remains in good overall condition, with the colours retaining attractive depth and vibrancy.
Foxing or staining is visible in areas of the sky. These marks are consistent with the paper-based medium and its previous history.
The double cream mount is clean and professionally fitted. The gold-tone wooden frame displays scuffs, scratches, surface wear and minor chips around the corners but remains structurally sound.
Protective glass is fitted over the artwork. The glass displays some stains and scratches which may become visible under certain lighting conditions.
Metal hanging mounts and cord are fitted to the reverse, allowing immediate wall display.
Please refer to the accompanying photographs for a complete visual record of condition and presentation.
Shipping
Worldwide delivery is available.
The glazed painting will be carefully protected, professionally packaged and fully insured for secure delivery within the United Kingdom or internationally.
Attribution and Research Notice
The historical observations, provenance research, attribution analysis and contextual commentary presented within this catalogue entry represent the professional opinion of Cheshire Antiques Consultant LTD®. They are offered in good faith as informed scholarly assessments based upon the available evidence, comparative research, published reference material and our experience within the international fine art market.
These observations should be understood as professional opinions rather than definitive statements of fact or guarantees of authorship, attribution, date, origin, provenance or historical interpretation. As with all historic works of art, future documentary discoveries, technical examination, conservation analysis or advances in academic research may refine, expand or revise current interpretations.
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