Skip to main content

Style of Gustave Courbet, 'The Pool', probably 1870-80

Key facts
Full title The Pool
Artist Style of Gustave Courbet
Artist dates 1819 - 1877
Date made probably 1870-80
Medium and support oil on canvas
Dimensions 72.4 × 58.7 cm
Inscription summary Signed
Acquisition credit Sir Hugh Lane Bequest, 1917, The National Gallery, London. In partnership with Hugh Lane Gallery, Dublin.
Inventory number NG3243
Location On loan: Long Loan to The Hugh Lane (2019 - 2031), Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, Dublin, Ireland
Collection Main Collection
The Pool
Style of Gustave Courbet
/

In July 1873 Courbet fled France for Switzerland and settled in the town of La Tour-de-Peilz on the north shore of Lac Léman (Lake Geneva), near the French border. A label on the back of this view of a lush Alpine valley gives the location as Vevey, on the north shore of the lake and close to La Tour-de-Peilz. It has also been suggested that the view may be in the upper part of the Gorges de Chauderon, above Montreux, which is further east along the shore.

Although Courbet painted a number of views of the lake and its surroundings, he did not paint this picture. It was instead painted by an assistant, not as a copy of a Courbet but as an independent picture that belongs to a substantial group of Swiss landscapes painted in the style of Courbet. Although it is sometimes possible to identify the assistant who produced a painting, it is not yet possible in this case.

Download image
Download low-resolution image

Download a low-resolution copy of this image for personal use.

License this image

License and download a high-resolution image for reproductions up to A3 size from the National Gallery Picture Library.

License image
Download low-resolution image

This image is licensed for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons agreement.

Examples of non-commercial use are:

  • Research, private study, or for internal circulation within an educational organisation (such as a school, college or university)
  • Non-profit publications, personal websites, blogs, and social media

The image file is 800 pixels on the longest side.

As a charity, we depend upon the generosity of individuals to ensure the collection continues to engage and inspire. Help keep us free by making a donation today.

Download low-resolution image

You must agree to the Creative Commons terms and conditions to download this image.

Creative Commons Logo

Related paintings

(Showing 6 of 8 works)
In the Forest
In the Forest
Gustave Courbet
A few rays of sunlight break through the canopy of this tranquil forest, reflecting off the surface of a small pool and the nearby trees. A hind is visible at the water’s edge, head bent down to drink, while a stag rests on the grass in the foreground.Although he was regarded as an accomplished l...
On display elsewhere
Still Life with Apples and a Pomegranate
Still Life with Apples and a Pomegranate
Gustave Courbet
In a warm and dark room, Courbet’s rich, ripe apples seem to glow as if in firelight. The heavy earthenware bowl lined with pale blue slip seems almost too small for the weight of the fruit piled into it. Among them is a single pomegranate, squeezed in at the base of the heap.In 1871 Courbet was...
Room 25
The Diligence in the Snow
The Diligence in the Snow
Gustave Courbet
The high viewpoint in this painting opens up the prospect of the vast distance, heightening its very real feeling of terror – yet the viewpoint also places us at a safe distance from the scene, without it losing its hold. The chaos of the overturned coach, the rearing horse and the bodies flailin...
On display elsewhere
View of Lac Léman
View of Lac Léman
Gustave Courbet
Turbulent grey clouds roll across the sky. The lake beneath it is calm, but a storm threatens. It’s evening, and a tiny sailing boat in the distance is little more than a smudge on the horizon against the vivid orange and gold of the dying sun. Soft red reflections streak the surface of the water...
Room 45
Young Ladies on the Banks of the Seine (Summer)
Young Ladies on the Banks of the Seine (Summer)
Possibly after Gustave Courbet
Two young women lie by a river. Traditionally, such a scene would be set in an idyllic landscape, with the women as impossibly perfect ideals of youth and beauty, often in the guise of classical nudes – goddesses of Greek mythology. But this pair caused a scandal when a larger version (now in the...
Not on display
Landscape
Landscape
Style of Gustave Courbet
Although inscribed G. Courbet, there is little reason to believe this is a work by Gustave Courbet, or even by one of his collaborators. The painting was previously titled L’Orage (The Storm) because of the dark grey cloud that looms over the landscape. Despite the area of bright blue sky on the...
Not on display
The Sea near Palavas
The Sea near Palavas
Style of Gustave Courbet
This is a view of the coast at Palavas-les-Flots, a fishing village south of Montpellier. The picture is similar to seascapes that Gustave Courbet painted there during his several visits to Montpellier in the 1850s. In particular, there are resemblances to his small painting The Seaside at Pala...
Not on display
The Man with the Leather Belt: Portrait of the Artist
The Man with the Leather Belt: Portrait of the Artist
After Gustave Courbet
From around 1842 and into the 1850s Courbet painted about 20 self portraits in which he presented himself in different guises. This portrait is a reduced version of The Man with the Leather Belt (Musée d’Orsay, Paris), which Courbet painted around 1845–6.Courbet painted replicas of at least three...
On display elsewhere
You've viewed 6 of 8 paintings