拍品專文
In the mid 1870s, Courbet returned to a theme that had been an obsession during a two month sojourn at Etretat the fall of 1869--a period of great creativity that resulted in a series of over twenty seascapes focusing on waves--gentle and undulating as they roll out to sea, or violently crashing along the shore. Our seascape, dated 1874, shows a gentle sea at sunset. Courbet has perfectly captured the brief moments after the sun has set behind the horizon, when the lowest clouds are infused with blazing rays of orange. The frothy white caps of the waves as they roll to shore are evoked through Courbet's vituoso handling of thick, white paint applied with a palette knife. As in most of Courbet's marine scenes, man's presence is only felt in the two tiny boats barely visible off in the distance.
This painting will be included in the forthcoming supplement to the
catalogue raisonné on Gustave Courbet being prepared by the Wildenstein Foundation.
This painting will be included in the forthcoming supplement to the
catalogue raisonné on Gustave Courbet being prepared by the Wildenstein Foundation.