Boats on a Beach, Etretat
c. 1872/1875
Artist, French, 1819 - 1877

Artwork overview
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Medium
oil on canvas
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Credit Line
Gift of the W. Averell Harriman Foundation in memory of Marie N. Harriman
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Dimensions
overall: 64.8 x 91.4 cm (25 1/2 x 36 in.)
framed: 99.1 x 125.1 x 11.4 cm (39 x 49 1/4 x 4 1/2 in.) -
Accession
1972.9.7
Artwork history & notes
Provenance
Private collection, London. (Rosenberg & Helft Galleries, London), by 1938.[1] (Paul Rosenberg and Co., New York), by 1943;[2] sold 10 June 1946 to Marie N. Harriman [1903-1970] and W. Averell Harriman [1891-1986], New York;[3] The W. Averell Harriman Foundation, New York; gift 1972 to NGA.
[1] Exhibited by Rosenberg & Helft Galleries in 1938 in London.
[2] Exhibited and offered for sale by Paul Rosenberg & Co., New York, in 1943.
[3] According to Harriman collection records in NGA curatorial files.
Associated Names
Exhibition History
1938
Ten French Painters of the 19th Century, Rosenberg & Helft Galleries, London, 1938, no. 7, as Bateaux devant la falaise
London, La Flèche d'Or, 1938
Exposition Courbet, Rosenberg & Helft Galleries, London, 1938, no. 16, repro., as Bateaux devant la falaise
1943
Exhibition of French Painting of the Nineteenth Century and French and American Painting of the Twentieth Century, Paul Rosenberg and Co., New York, 1943, no. 2
1954
Benefit for the North Shore Hospital, Country Art Gallery, Westbury, Long Island, 1954, unnumbered checklist.
1956
Loan Exhibition of Paintings by Gustave Courbet, Paul Rosenberg and Co., New York, 1956, no. 11, repro.
1959
Masterpieces of Impressionism and Post-Impressionist Painting, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1959, unnumbered catalogue, repro.
1961
Exhibition of the Marie and Averell Harriman Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1961, unnumbered catalogue, repro. 10
Treasures in America, The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, 1961, unnumbered catalogue, repro.
1966
Romantics and Realists, Wildenstein & Co., New York, 1966, no. 20, repro.
1976
Loan for display with permanent collection, Art Museum of South Texas, Corpus Christie, 1976-1979.
1989
Impressionisti della National Gallery of Art di Washington, Ala Napoleonica e Museo Correr, Venice; Palazzo Reale, Milan, 1989, unnumbered catalogue, repro.
1990
Französische Impressionisten und ihre Wegbereiter aus der National Gallery of Art, Washington und dem Cincinnati Art Museum, Neue Pinakothek, Munich, 1990, no. 15, repro.
1992
From El Greco to Cézanne: Masterpieces of European Painting from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, and The Metroplitan Museum of Art, New York, National Gallery of Greece, Athens, 1992-1993, no. 41, repro.
1999
Masterpieces from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art; Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, 1999, no. 7, repro.
Around Impressionism: French Paintings from the National Gallery of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1999, no cat.
2019
Yan Pei-Ming face à Courbet, Musée départemental Gustave Courbet, Ornans, 2019, unnumbered catalogue, repro.
Bibliography
1959
National Gallery of Art. Masterpieces of Impressionist and Post-Impressionist Painting. Exh. Cat. National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., 1959: 10, repro.
1966
"Romantics and Realists." Arts Magazine 40, no. 7 (May 1966): 26, repro.
1975
European Paintings: An Illustrated Summary Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1975: 84, repro.
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. New York, 1975: 449, no. 655, color repro.
1978
Fernier, Robert. La Vie et l'oeuvre de Gustave Courbet, catalogue raisonné. Peintures, 1866-1877, dessins, sculptures. Paris, 1978: 94, no. 716.
1984
Walker, John. National Gallery of Art, Washington. Rev. ed. New York, 1984: 445, no. 643, color repro.
1985
Courthion, Pierre. L'opera completa di Courbet. Milan, 1985: no. 688, repro.
European Paintings: An Illustrated Catalogue. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1985: 103, repro.
2000
Eitner, Lorenz. French Paintings of the Nineteenth Century, Part I: Before Impressionism. The Collections of the National Gallery of Art Systematic Catalogue. Washington, D.C., 2000: 138-141, color repro.
Inscriptions
lower right: G. Courbet
Wikidata ID
Q20188745