The Departure of the Boats, Étretat
1885
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
73.5 × 93.5 cm (28 15/16 × 36 13/16 in.); Framed: 102.3 × 121.7 × 10.8 cm (40 1/4 × 47 7/8 × 4 1/4 in.)
Classification
painting
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
81540
Art Historical Context
Claude Monet's *The Departure of the Boats, Étretat* (1885) captures the dramatic Normandy coastline at Étretat, a favored subject for the artist during his late-19th-century painting campaigns. This oil on canvas, measuring 73.5 × 93.5 cm, depicts boats setting out from the harbor against the iconic chalk cliffs and turbulent sea, embodying Monet's obsession with capturing ephemeral light and atmosphere. As a cornerstone of Impressionism, Monet pioneered loose, dappled brushstrokes and vibrant color contrasts to convey movement and changing weather rather than precise details. Oil on canvas ...
About the Artist
Claude Monet · 1840–1926
Claude Monet, born Oscar-Claude Monet on November 14, 1840, in Paris and raised in Le Havre, Normandy, began his artistic journey as a successful teenage caricaturist. His formal training started at the Le Havre secondary school of the arts in 1851, where he received his first drawing lessons from Jacques-François Ochard. Around 1858, he met Eugène Boudin, who became his pivotal mentor, introducin...