On loan: Long Loan to The Hugh Lane (2019 - 2031), Dublin City Gallery The Hugh Lane, Dublin, Ireland Tourgéville-les-Sablons, with its great sweep of beach, lies on the Normandy coast between Deauville and Benerville. Here, the two jetties at the mouth of the river Touques, which form an entrance to the harbour of Trouville-Deauville, can be seen in the middle distance, to the left of the chalk cliffs. Boudin had painted the jetties from another angle in The Entrance to Trouville Harbour, also in the National Gallery’s collection.
Unlike his earlier paintings of Normandy beaches filled with smart crowds, in this airy panoramic view the beach is quite sparsely populated. Small groups of figures stroll along the sand or sit by the grass-covered dunes, and ships and steamers ply their way through waves on the horizon. But it is the vast expanse of sky, filled with scudding clouds, that dominates the composition.
Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Martin Davies, with additions and some revisions by Cecil Gould, ‘National Gallery Catalogues: French School: Early 19th Century, Impressionists, Post-Impressionists, etc.’, London 1970; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.
C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
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