On the Beach, Les Petits-Dalles, Fécamp (Translation)
Sur la Plage (Primary Title)
Berthe Morisot, French, 1841 - 1895 (Artist)
Morisot depicts the sky, ocean, and beach of Les Petits Dalles near Fécamp, a favorite vacation spot in Normandy for the artist and her family. Like Manet in his earlier On the Beach, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Morisot renounces topographical details in this scene to lend emphasis to the figures on the beach. Unlike Manet’s composition, however, Morisot’s beach scene is uniformly rendered with her characteristically loose brushstrokes, and the converging horizon lines conform to the natural perspective seen by the human eye. The even lighting of the scene is undramatic yet atmospheric, and it appears to have been sketched by the artist from her position on the boardwalk in a single sitting.
signed, lower right: "Berthe Morisot"
hand-written label on back of stretcher: "Berthe Morisot / no. 1000 b / Sur la plage / 1886 / ? dC. Painted at Petites-Dalles, France"
Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Mellon
Clairet, Alain, et al. Berthe Morisot,1841-1895: Catalogue Raisonne de L'oeuvre Peint. Collection Le Catalogue Cera-Nrs Editions, 1997. p. 50, 87, 92, B&W illus. no 127.
2023: "Léon Monet. Collector and Brother of the Artist", organized by RMN-GP, musée du Luxembourg, Paris, March 15 - July 16, 2023
2019-2020: "Van Gogh Monet Degas, The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts", Palazzo Zabarella, Padua, Italy, October 26, 2019 - March 1, 2020
2019-2021: Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and Their Times: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN, February 2 - May 5, 2019; Mississippi Museum of Art, Jackson, MS, April 4, 2020 - January 10, 2021
2018: "Country Life: Masterpieces from the Mellon Collection of MVFA", Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature, Paris, France, September 4 - December 2, 2018
2018-2019: "Van Gogh, Monet, Degas: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts", The Frick Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, March 17 - July 15, 2018; Oklahoma Museum of Art, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, June 22 - September 22, 2019
2016: Open Air Studio, The Impressionists in Normandy, Musée Jacquemart André, Paris, March 18 - July 25, 2016
2013: Au bord de l’eau! Loisirs et impressionisme, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen, April 27-Sep. 22, 2013
2008: Women Impressionists: Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassatt, Eva Gonzalès, Marie Bracquemond, California Palace of the Legion of Honor, June 21-Sept. 21, 2008
2004: Manet and the Sea, (not lent to first venue, AIC, due to time restrictions of the Mellon gift); Philadelphia Museum of Art, Feb. 8-May 9, 2004; Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, June 18-Sept. 26, 2004
2002: Berthe Morisot, Musée des Beaux Arts, Lille, March 8-June 9, 2002; Fondation Gianadda, Martigny, Switzerland, June 20-Nov. 19, 2002
1985: French Marine Painting of the Nineteenth Century, Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL, March 16-May 5, 1985
1961: Berthe Morisot, Wildenstein & Co., London, 1961, no. 5
1954: The Pleydell-Bouverie Collection, Tate Gallery, London, 1954, No. 28
1925: Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris, no 53. p. 14
1874: Durand-Ruel’s group show in London, 1874
2019-2020: "Van Gogh Monet Degas, The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts", Palazzo Zabarella, Padua, Italy, October 26, 2019 - March 1, 2020
2019-2021: Van Gogh, Monet, Degas, and Their Times: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Frist Art Museum, Nashville, TN, February 2 - May 5, 2019; Mississippi Museum of Art, Jackson, MS, April 4, 2020 - January 10, 2021
2018: "Country Life: Masterpieces from the Mellon Collection of MVFA", Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature, Paris, France, September 4 - December 2, 2018
2018-2019: "Van Gogh, Monet, Degas: The Mellon Collection of French Art from the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts", The Frick Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, March 17 - July 15, 2018; Oklahoma Museum of Art, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, June 22 - September 22, 2019
2016: Open Air Studio, The Impressionists in Normandy, Musée Jacquemart André, Paris, March 18 - July 25, 2016
2013: Au bord de l’eau! Loisirs et impressionisme, Musée des Beaux-Arts de Caen, April 27-Sep. 22, 2013
2008: Women Impressionists: Berthe Morisot, Mary Cassatt, Eva Gonzalès, Marie Bracquemond, California Palace of the Legion of Honor, June 21-Sept. 21, 2008
2004: Manet and the Sea, (not lent to first venue, AIC, due to time restrictions of the Mellon gift); Philadelphia Museum of Art, Feb. 8-May 9, 2004; Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, June 18-Sept. 26, 2004
2002: Berthe Morisot, Musée des Beaux Arts, Lille, March 8-June 9, 2002; Fondation Gianadda, Martigny, Switzerland, June 20-Nov. 19, 2002
1985: French Marine Painting of the Nineteenth Century, Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg, FL, March 16-May 5, 1985
1961: Berthe Morisot, Wildenstein & Co., London, 1961, no. 5
1954: The Pleydell-Bouverie Collection, Tate Gallery, London, 1954, No. 28
1925: Musee des Arts Decoratifs, Paris, no 53. p. 14
1874: Durand-Ruel’s group show in London, 1874
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC
Some object records are not complete and do not reflect VMFA's full and current knowledge. VMFA makes routine updates as records are reviewed and enhanced.
