Vue de l’Avant-Port de Dieppe (View of the Fore-Port of Dieppe, Afternoon Sun), 1902

Camille Pissarro (1830-1903), and impressionist at first, evolved his style by enriching it with new experiences, such as that of the divisionism showcased by Seurat and Signac. He practised this in the 1880s, before adopting a more liberal technique towards the end of his life. For 20 years, Pissarro painted the ports of Rouen, Dieppe and Havre. He painted this work during his second visit to Dieppe, where he settled at the window of his hotel room, which gave him a view over the entire port.
In the foreground, the landscape shows the beach with a bird's eye view. A crowd of people stand in front. Are they watching the boats go by, or are they waiting for a train? Dieppe's maritime station is located on the quays of the port.
In the background, under the summer afternoon sun, the whites of the cliffs which stretch along the edge of the town contrast with the warm colors of the houses, with rosy beige walls, lifted by reflections of the blue sea and sky, and the green of the hills.
Pissarro created a series, and developed this motif across various viewpoints and atmospheric variations.