Wäinö Aaltonen’s sculpture Tempest is a twin version of a grave monument in Pori, erected in memory of those who died in the sinking of the torpedo boat S2 53. The torpedo boat sank during a storm in the Bothnian Sea in 1925. The sculpture commemorating the event expresses the despair experienced by those lost at sea and their families.

The work’s expression also recalls the ancient Greek sculpture of the goddess of victory, the Winged Victory of Samothrace (300–200 BC), a monument commemorating a naval battle. Aaltonen usually depicted his female figures as solemn, innocent and introspective, often capturing them dramatically in mid-movement.