À propos de l’œuvre
La Manne-Porte, Étretat, par Claude Monet
Claude Monet · The Downstream Gate caught in the evening light · Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium
Étretat, cliff and Porte d'Aval at sunset W1015ahand painted reproduction
The cliff of Aval stands like a purple and brown mass on the left edge, pierced by the luminous opening of the Gate. The sea, the yellow sky and the purple clouds come together in a sunset where the rock loses its usual whiteness. Monet produced this version in Étretat in 1885.
Look at the work
The dark cliff frames an opening charged with light
The rock advances from the left and occupies almost the entire height. Its edge plunges diagonally towards the sea, then the arch cuts a narrow window in the mass. This clear opening catches the eye before sending it back towards the horizon.
The yellow of the sunset reaches the sky and the surface of the water. Purples, pinks and browns shape the cliff, while a few blue-gray bands indicate the swell. Monet does not clearly separate the sea from the sky: the light brings them together.
The natural arch not only serves as a picturesque motif: it becomes a passage of light in the heart of the almost opaque mass of the cliff.
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 composition dominated by a single volume
The cliff imposes considerable weight on the left side. The large, clear space of sky and sea on the right restores balance without adding a boat or figure.
Sunset reverses usual values
Étretat's white chalk turns brown, purple and pink in the shadows. Conversely, the water and sky receive the brightest yellows, which moves the atmosphere forward in front of the rock.
The Downstream Gate, not the Manneporte
The viewpoint shows the arch that closes Étretat beach to the west. The opening, the slope of the summit and the relationship to the bay correspond to the Porte d'Aval represented in this Brussels version.
Reference image
Read this specific version
The visual corresponds to Étretat, the cliff and the Porte d'Aval at sunset, oil on canvas from 1885, 60 × 73.5 cm, inventory 9025 and Wildenstein 1015a. The unique WebP measures 556 × 445 px, maximum definition of the exact document available, without artificial enlargement.
The arch maintains a narrow, bright opening
Its shape should not be widened or rounded. The contrast between the gap and the rock mass gives its identity to this version.
The shadows of the cliff remain chromatic
Purple, red-brown, blue and pink describe the relief. A uniform black or gray surface would remove the vibration of the sunset.
The sea takes on the color of the sky
Yellows and roses mingle with the cold bands. This atmospheric continuity must remain visible up to the lower edge of the canvas.
Documented benchmarks
Three pieces of information specific to this work
This oil on canvas from 1885 measures 60 × 73.5 cm. Preserved at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium under inventory 9025, it is identified by number 1015a of the Wildenstein catalog.
A version long called La Manne-Porte
The scientific documentation of the Royal Museums has restored the motif: the silhouette represented is the cliff and the Downstream Gate at sunset. Inventory number 9025 precisely fixes the canvas concerned.
Monet returned to Étretat in 1885
It takes up the Normandy cliffs from various angles and lights. Serial work allows him to compare the same masses of chalk in the morning, in the rain, in bad weather or at the end of the day.
A separate version, Wildenstein 1015a
The landscapes of Étretat are numerous and close in subject matter. The suffix "a" distinguishes this painting from other end of the day and sunsets painted in the same place.
Your reproduction
What the painter must preserve
Fidelity here depends on precise relationships between light, touch, depth and color temperature.
- Respect the exact silhouette of the Aval cliff.
- Preserve the narrow arch as a bright center.
- Circulate the yellows of the sky in the sea.
- Shade the rock with purples, pinks and browns.
Work sheet
| Title | Étretat, cliff and Porte d'Aval at sunset W1015a |
|---|---|
| Artist | Claude Monet (1840 -1926) |
| Date | 1885 |
| Original technique | Oil on canvas |
| Dimensions | 60 × 73.5 cm |
| Orientation | Horizontal |
| Conservation | Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels, Belgium |
| Inventory | Inv. 9025 · Wildenstein 1015a |
| Your reproduction | Handmade oil painting on canvas |
Presentation in your interior
A palette designed with the room
This view of Étretat is suitable for a living room, bedroom or space in natural tones. A patinated walnut, bronze or gold frame highlights the cliff; a cream, gray pink or slate blue wall reveals the sunset.
