À propos de l’œuvre
Soleil couchant à Étretat, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · Étretat · 1882 -1883 · W817
La Falaise d'Étretat, setting sun W817hand painted reproduction
The Downstream Gate and the Needle are silhouetted in dark blue facing an orange sun, while the sea reflects touches of pink, yellow and green. Painted in 1882 -1883, this 60.5 × 81.8 cm oil on canvas is kept at the North Carolina Museum of Art under number 67.24.1 and corresponds to Wildenstein 817.
Look at the work
The low sun transforms the cliff into a monumental silhouette
The mass of the cliff occupies the entire left half. Its clear arch frames a portion of sky and separates the Needle from the shore. On the right, the solar disk, small but very saturated, becomes the most intense point of the composition.
The sea is built by horizontal lines which take up the colors of the sky without producing a regular reflection. The cold blues of the rock oppose the pink and orange of the sunset; their contrast makes the contours vibrate.
In W817, the orange of the sun is enough to change the entire scene: the cliff turns blue, the water turns pink and the sky appears bright despite its clouds.
Composition, touch and light
What Monet builds behind the impression of snapshot
Three precise elements allow us to understand this composition and the essential difficulties of faithful reproduction.
A dark mass facing a bright spot
The cliff and the Needle form a heavy whole on the left, balanced by the small solar disk on the right. The difference in scale reinforces the tension of bedtime.
The ark as an opening in the rock
The Downstream Gate is not simply drawn by its outer edge. The clear area visible beneath the arch passes through the mass and circulates the atmosphere to the center.
Colors superimposed in the cool
The museum notice describes the application of colors to paint that is still damp for the sun. The partial mixture retains an orange core surrounded by pink passages.
Reference image
Read this specific version
Only one exact image of W817 is used. The real WebP measures 2,200 × 1,627 px, kept at available resolution without artificial enlargement.
Keep the cliff dark blue
It must not turn black. Variations of blue, green and purple maintain the pattern of the rock despite the backlight.
Preserve the isolated intensity of the sun
The disk remains small and sharp compared to the sky. Enlarging it or diffusing its orange too widely would reduce the strength of this focal point.
Vibrate water horizontally
The pink, cream, green and blue lines overlap without forming a mirror. Their low, stretched orientation makes the marine surface credible.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
The North Carolina Museum of Art documents The Cliff of Étretat, setting sun, oil on canvas from 1882 -1883, 60.5 × 81.8 cm, inventory 67.24.1 and W817.
Three weeks in Étretat in February 1883
Monet works on the Normandy coast despite the cold and the difficulties of the terrain. The museum indicates that he began at least eighteen paintings during this stay.
The Downstream Gate and the Needle
The natural arch nicknamed the Elephant and the neighboring monolith give the silhouette its recognizable shape. Monet observes them from the sea or the beach under several lights.
Durand-Ruel acquires the work from Monet
The merchant purchased the painting from the artist in November 1883. After several American collections, it was acquired by the Raleigh Museum in 1967.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- The Wildenstein 817 version of Raleigh
- The Downstream Gate and the Needle backlit
- The little orange sun on the right
- The pink and green reflections that cross the sea
Work sheet
| Title | La Falaise d'Étretat, setting sun W817 |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1882 - 1883 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 60.5 × 81.8 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States |
| Inventory | 67.24.1 · Wildenstein 817 |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
Deep blues and pastel highlights are suitable for a living room, bedroom or entrance. A bluish gray, sand or warm white wall and some terracotta accents take up the contrast of the setting sun.
