Eugène Boudin, 'The Entrance to Trouville Harbour', 1888
About the work
Overview
Boudin, who was born and grew up in the Normandy port of Honfleur and later owned a framing shop in Le Havre, had a lifelong fascination with the Channel coast. He is best known for his paintings of affluent holidaymakers on the beaches of Trouville, but this painting shows a different aspect of life in the Normandy port. Here we see the mouth of the river Touques at the point where it flows into the sea, with the two jetties either side forming the entrance to the harbour.
The tide is low, and ships are aground on the sandy banks. Boudin plays with the contrast between the river, as still and glassy as a mirror, and the lively sky with its scudding clouds. The two are separated by a narrow band of turquoise sea with a suggestion of breaking waves.
Key facts
Details
- Full title
- The Entrance to Trouville Harbour
- Artist
- Eugène Boudin
- Artist dates
- 1824 - 1898
- Date made
- 1888
- Medium and support
- oil on wood
- Dimensions
- 32.4 × 40.9 cm
- Inscription summary
- Signed; Dated
- Acquisition credit
- Presented by the Art Fund, 1906
- Inventory number
- NG2078
- Location
- Not on display
- Collection
- Main Collection
About this record
If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.