Chapel on the beach 

Ivan Konstantinovich Aivazovsky painted this “Chapel on the Beach” using oil paints. The overall impression is one of nocturnal calm, achieved through a careful arrangement of light and shadow. Notice how Aivazovsky uses a limited palette, mostly muted greens and browns, to create a serene atmosphere. This is contrasted by the sharp, vertical lines of the cypress trees and the chapel, which punctuate the composition and draw the eye upwards. The light from the moon not only illuminates the scene but also unifies the different elements, reflecting on the water and the chapel’s walls. Aivazovsky uses light to destabilize the very definition of the chapel, creating a semiotic system of religious and natural signs that question fixed meaning. This challenges the traditional symbolic order, making the artwork a site for multiple interpretations.