Sea Dog

2003 · Sculpture

May one see it?

Unknown: the museum keeps its counsel

Victoria and Albert Museum

London, United Kingdom

The owner is known. Whether it is on view today, the museum does not say, and we were not trained to guess.

In this state since: Sep 25, 2026
Source: The museum's own collection data

On the map Museum page

About the sculpture

'When you are young you don't really know who you are, or what will become of you. But I did want to find these things out, very badly. One way to do this is to start by fantasising different versions of YOU. One of the Me's I invented was a crusty old sea captain called SEA DOG. I knew, for example, that I wanted to see the world because I wanted find out how big I wasn't. Finding out that I was less important in the grand scheme of things than I felt at home, would help me, I thought, not take my own sadness so seriously that it devoured me. I wanted to be far away from the world I was in, and fell asleep one night hoping this would happen. I dreamt of Richard the sea dog captain, remembering my voyages, and especially the one to the wild waters of the Philippines. I had had, remembering them, great adventures there, and managed to return safely.

Read on

I remembered thinking how grand my life was, and understood that I had become who I am thanks to such experiences. But, as it turns out, I did not become a captain, and never went to the Philippines on a ship. And, even though some people probably think me crusty, I am not a dog either. But what?' (Richard Meitner, artist, on 'Sea Dog')

Victoria and Albert Museum