Fécamp, Le port

Eugène Boudin prints bring the fresh sea air of the Normandy coast into your home: elegant holidaymakers on the beach at Trouville, sailing boats in harbor, washerwomen by the river and wide, cloud-filled skies. Boudin was one of the first French landscape painters to work outdoors, and Corot called him the "King of the Skies". This collection gathers art prints of his beaches, harbors, river scenes and travels.

About Eugène Boudin

Eugène Boudin was born in Honfleur on 12 July 1824, the son of a harbor pilot, and as a boy worked on a steamboat between Le Havre and Honfleur. In 1835 the family moved to Le Havre, where his father opened a stationery and picture-framing shop. There Boudin met painters such as Constant Troyon and Jean-François Millet, who encouraged him to become an artist.

At 22 he gave up business to paint full time. A scholarship in 1850 took him to Paris, where he studied with Eugène Isabey and copied at the Louvre, while returning often to paint in Normandy and Brittany. The Dutch painter Johan Barthold Jongkind encouraged him to paint outdoors, and in 1859 Gustave Courbet introduced him to the critic Charles Baudelaire, who praised his work at the Salon that year.

Around 1858 Boudin met the teenage Claude Monet in Le Havre and persuaded him to paint landscapes in the open air. In 1863 he married Marie-Anne Guédès. He showed at the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874, and later won awards at the Salon and the 1889 Exposition Universelle. He died at Deauville on 8 August 1898.

Style and Subjects

Boudin painted what he saw on the coast of Normandy: fashionable visitors strolling on the beach at Trouville and Deauville, fishing boats and sailing ships in harbor, washerwomen at the river and cattle by the sea. Above all he painted the sky, which often takes up most of the canvas.

His brushwork is quick and fresh, catching changing light, wind and cloud. His small pastels and oil sketches made outdoors were praised by Baudelaire and helped prepare the way for Impressionism.

Famous Works

• The Beach at Trouville (c. 1867), Musée d'Orsay, Paris. Elegant visitors gathered on the sand under a vast sky.
• Princess Pauline Metternich on the Beach (c. 1865), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A fashionable princess at the seaside.
• Camaret, The Harbor During a Thunderstorm (1873), Palais des Beaux-Arts, Lille. Boats in a Breton harbor under a stormy sky.
• View of Bordeaux, from the Quai des Chartrons (1874), Cleveland Museum of Art. Ships crowding the busy river port.
• Washerwomen by the River (1880), Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Women washing linen on a riverbank.
• Women on the Beach at Berck (1881). Fishermen's wives waiting on the shore.
• The Dock of Deauville (1891), Cleveland Museum of Art. Boats moored in the harbor in soft light.

Decorating with Boudin Prints

Boudin's beach and harbor scenes are perfect for a coastal home, bathroom or bedroom. Their soft blues, silvery grays and touches of bright color create a relaxed, breezy mood and look lovely in white, light wood or simple gilt frames.

His elegant beach crowds suit a living room or hallway, and his small sky studies make a calm, airy gallery wall for a study or reading corner.

FAQ

What art movement was Eugène Boudin part of?

Boudin was a forerunner of Impressionism and one of the first French painters to work outdoors. He took part in the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874.

What is Eugène Boudin's most famous painting?

His beach scenes at Trouville, such as The Beach at Trouville in the Musée d'Orsay, are his best-known works, along with his many views of Normandy harbors.

Where can I see Boudin's original paintings?

The MuMa museum in Le Havre and the Musée Eugène Boudin in Honfleur hold large collections. Others are at the Musée d'Orsay, the National Gallery in London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art.

How can you recognize an Eugène Boudin painting?

Look for wide, luminous skies over low beaches or harbors, small figures in fashionable dress or working clothes, and quick, fresh brushstrokes.

Did Boudin teach Claude Monet?

Yes. Boudin met the young Monet in Le Havre in the late 1850s and persuaded him to give up caricatures and paint landscapes outdoors, a turning point in Monet's career.

Related Artists

• Claude Monet — the young painter Boudin encouraged to work outdoors
• Johan Barthold Jongkind — Dutch painter who advised him to paint en plein air
• Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot — who called him the "King of the Skies"
• Gustave Courbet — painted with him and introduced him to Baudelaire
• Constant Troyon — painter who encouraged his early career