From the end of the 1870s, Renoir adopted the habit of spending the winter months in Paris and then traveling to the provinces and coast in the summertime. Journeys as far afield as Algeria and Italy, where the vibrant light and novel subjects struck Renoir profoundly, were complemented by trips to the Atlantic and Channel coasts of France. Here Renoir found inspiration in the freshness of the climate and the naturally impressive formal qualities of the coastal landscape. The seaside also offered in the best traditions Impressionist practice an opportunity to explore the leisure pursuits of the middle classes. In the present work, Renoir tackles the subject of boats at rest in a harbor, with the generous application of striking white pigment placing emphasis on the bunched sails of the larger boat and the gusting billow of sails on the small yellow dinghy.
The painting is included in the Bernheim-Jeune archives as an authentic work.
Literature: Bernheim-Jeune (ed.) L'Atelier de Renoir, Vol. I, Paris, 1931, no.17 (illustrated plate 10). Will be in the upcoming catalog critique by the Wildenstein Institute.
Provenance: Kunsthaus Zurich Besitzer; Frau E. Masuer, Sudstr. 1995; Private Swiss Collection, Christie's Auction; Joshua Rogosnitzky, Belgium.
The painting is in excellent condition- unlined and unaltered from the artists' original stretching.
