Crinolines sur la Plage (Crinolines on the Beach), 1863

Born in Honfleur, the son of a sailor, and a young sailor himself, Eugène Boudin (1824-1898) retained close ties with the sea his whole life. In 1863, he created this painting depicting a crowd enjoying a day on the beach.
Seen from behind, the characters create a frieze in the lower third of the canvas, leaving the larger sections to the sky. The painting's title refers to an item of clothing worn by women during the period of the Second Empire: the crinoline. The word is used to reference the upper classes that Boudin liked to depict at the Normandy seasides.
Boudin's stroke, fast and light, contributes to the sensation of a coastal breeze. From the beginning, he was particularly sensitive to the atmospheric variations he studied. His outdoor work, and his modern iconography, had a strong influence in the works of Monet, who met him in 1858.