Impressionism and the Sea

Capturing the natural beauty of coastal landscapes and the delicate play of light on water, this volume celebrates impressionist depictions of nautical and beachside life.

The impressionists were forever inspired by the sea, which Claude Monet considered "a wonderful teacher for landscape artists." The movement's penchant for plein air painting and its characteristic style, with delicate brushstrokes and incomparable color palettes, was perfectly suited to portrayals of the sea and its perpetual movement, from gently rippling waves to raging storms. Normandy was the birthplace of impressionism and home to many painters who never tired of depicting the light-dappled sea, pebbled beaches, bathers, ships, and changing skies of the Norman coast.

Through the works of Claude Monet, Édouard Manet, Edgar Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Gustave Courbet, Paul Gauguin, Eugène Boudin, Johan Barthold Jongkind, and more, this volume takes readers on a journey along coastlines and beaches-from the Riviera to Tahiti-to discover all aspects of seaside life in the nineteenth century.