Cliffs in Etretatu

Date: 1869
Medium: oil on canvas
Location: Van der Heydt Museum, Wuppertal, Germany
Dimensions: 114 x 93

The picture shows a picturesque seascape with high rocky cliffs towering over the beach. In the middle of the cliffs, an opening can be seen, creating a natural rock gate. On the sandy shore, wooden fishing boats are visible, one overturned and the other standing up. In the left part of the picture there is a tastefully placed rock overhang with openings, which could have served as a shelter or storage area. The sky is partly cloudy, but sunlight penetrates the clouds and illuminates the scene. Overall, the image has a calm and relaxed feel.

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Courbet painted picture Cliffs in Etretatu in 1869. Prevailing color of this fine art print is vivid and its shape is landscape. Original size is 114 x 93. This art piece is located in Van der Heydt Museum, Wuppertal, Germany. This image is printed on demand - you can choose material, size and finishing.

Gustave Courbet (1819 - 1877). French painter regarded as a leading figure of French realism of the 19th century. In 1839, he went to study law in Paris, but instead devoted himself to painting (he copied works by Spanish, Venetian and Dutch masters). His first success was in the Salon in 1849, when he received the gold medal for his painting Afternoon in Ornans. Courbet was inspired by Dutch masters ( Rembrandt, Hals and others). His influence was also Giorgione and Tizian. In the beginning, he pursued the track of austere rules tied to academicism that, for his open-minded nature, was too strict. He therefore painted according to the romanticists (Delacroix and Géricault). With the painting Funeral in Ornans, in which he captured his grandfather’s funeral, he distanced himself from romanticism and has since been considered a painter of realism.