The Seaweed Gatherers

A master American painter at the turn-of-the-century, Frederick Arthur Bridgman was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, and found most of his artistic inspiration during his stays in France, specifically in Brittany and Normandy. This is where the subject for his seaweed gatherers could originate. The incoming tide washes the weed on shore while men and women gather it with pitchforks specifically designed for the activity. In this scene, the artist demonstrates his skill in capturing water on canvas in all its facets. Bridgman is considered one of the most significant painters of his time, especially for his so-called Oriental paintings of scenes from Middle Eastern, South Asian, and East Asian cultures.

Seaweed has many important uses, including: commercial production of food in Asia, Polynesia

and the British Islands: iodine: non-flammable, lightweight alginate textile fibers used in theater curtains; hosiery and medical dressings; and gum used in water-remoistened products. The seaweed harvested in this painting is sessile algae and can be green, brown, red or blue-green. It is being gathered on the coast of France at Pointe de la Torche/Penmarche, Finistere, Brittany. Bridgman painted this scene when he was living in Lyon-la-Forêt in Normandy.