Lot 164
  • 164

Eugène Boudin

Estimate
180,000 - 250,000 USD
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Description

  • Eugène Louis Boudin
  • Le Port de Camaret
  • Signed, dated and inscribed E. Boudin '72 Camaret (lower left)
  • Oil on canvas
  • 19 7/8 by 30 1/4 inches
  • 50.5 by 76.8 cm

Provenance

Beugniet and Bonjean, Paris
Galerie de la Corraterie, Geneva
Façade Gallery, New York
Acquired by the present owners in 1990

Exhibited

Lausanne, Foundation de l'Hermitage, L'Impressionisme dans les Collections Romandes, 1982, illustrated p. 18

Literature

Robert Schmit, Eugène Boudin, Catalogue raisonné de l'oeuvre peint, vol. I, Paris, 1973, no. 805, illustrated p. 288

Condition

Original canvas. Some slight buckling along top edge. Under UV light, 4 pinhead size dots of inpainting at center of top left quadrant, 4 inch-long strokes in sky to left and right to center of painting. Few other areas fluoresce but are original pigments.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Catalogue Note

Among the masters of nineteenth century European painters, Boudin has been long treasured for his depictions of the seascapes of Trouville as well as bustling ports and sailing ships that plied the waters of distant ports of call. His style of painting en plein air was a precursor of the Impressionist movement. Boudin was greatly preoccupied with the depiction of light and atmospheric effects. Indeed, Boudin had a profound influence on Claude Monet by urging the reluctant artist to paint outdoors. Monet in later years was quoted as saying, "If I have become a painter, I owe it to Boudin." Although Boudin was already an established painter and older than the rest of the Impressionists, he exhibited with them in the first group exhibition of 1874.

Le Port de Camaret depicts one of Boudin's favorite nautical subjects, the schooner.  With delicate yet deliberate brush strokes, Boudin has captured the momentary calm of high tide. Vessels in varying stages of having their sails furled are visible, while dappled reflections dance beneath their massive hulls. Boudin nostalgically pays hommage to the old ships that hark back to a bygone era giving way to the age of steam.