There are two modes for this view, tide in and tide out. When the tide is out, the foreground is a puddled mud flat and the torii is no longer "floating". Obviously, the observer is encouraged to view it as I have in the painting. Damage from the hurricane of 1998 is still being repaired in 2005, and these buildings are actually under reconstruction The view of the island as seen from the ferryboat is the subject of the painting, Miyajima Torii, shown in this web site.