The art of Captain Cook's voyages

The Art of Captain Cook's Voyages represents a monumental scholarly endeavor to document the visual record of James Cook’s three Pacific expeditions between 1768 and 1780. Published in 1988, this multi-volume set was commissioned for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art. It serves as a definitive catalog raisonné, gathering the sketches, drawings, and paintings produced by the official artists—such as Sydney Parkinson, William Hodges, and John Webber—who accompanied Cook to document the landscapes, flora, fauna, and indigenous peoples encountered during these historic voyages.

Rüdiger Joppien and Bernard Smith co-authored this comprehensive survey, which was conceived to contextualize how European artists interpreted the Pacific during the Enlightenment. The work is widely regarded for its academic rigor, tracing the transition from the documentary, scientific focus of early voyages to the more picturesque and romanticized representations in the later journeys. By bridging the gap between colonial exploration and art history, the publication has become a fundamental reference point for researchers interested in the aesthetic and cultural legacy of maritime exploration.