1865 -1870 · Normandy, storm and marine matter

Courbet raises the wave like a mass: green water, thick foam and stormy skies transform the sea moment into a frontal shock.

Gustave Courbet painted the sea with intensity during his stays in Normandy, notably in Trouville and Étretat in the 1860s. He observed the coastline, the cliffs and the rapid changes in weather, then developed a series of waves whose framing eliminated almost all human landmark. The horizon line is high or partially hidden; a dark blade rises in the foreground before breaking into foam. Courbet applies the paint with a knife, a brush and sometimes with gestures that give white real thickness. The storm sky weighs on the water instead of opening up the space. Courbet applies the paint with a knife, a brush and sometimes with gestures that give white real thickness. The storm sky weighs on the water instead of opening up the space. The stormy sky weighs on the water instead of opening up the space. The many versions of The Wave are not simple copies: blade height, color, cloud and possible presence of a boat modify the tension of each painting. Presented around 1870, these marines strike with their physical violence and influence the modern view of the sea. Courbet seeks neither fishing anecdote nor literary sublime; he constructs the material event of a mass arriving. The "Waves of Gustave Courbet" selection notably compares The Wave and The Wave. His reading favors light.

Courbet's wave cannot be seen in the distance: it advances to the edge of the canvas and forces the viewer to receive its weight.