Gustave Courbet, The Calm Sea, 1869, oil on canvas, H.O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York
Title: The Calm Sea, 1869
Gustave Courbet (1819-1877)
The summer may not be officially over until September 22 in the Northern Hemisphere, but its final holiday, Labor Day, symbolizes the season’s end. A weekend when many of us return to our favorite beach for a farewell swim, often crowded with fellow tourists intent on the same purpose. The water warmed by the months of sun and heat–if only the milder temperatures would last.
For soon the seaside will be abandoned as in The Calm Sea by 19th century French artist Gustave Courbet. Or would you like to join the fortunate few and extend your vacation? For a period of quiet and meditation, the only sound, the tide gently coming into shore.
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