Sunset in Barfleur

Sunset in Barfleur

Like the painting Le Phare de Gatteville le soir, and presumably created around the same time, this is an impressionistic study of sky, water, and dark land masses, expressed in a sketchlike manner with no attempt at detail. Nevertheless, this is a completed work, not a study for another. It may have had little appeal to the conservative art-buying public of the time, which was precisely why Buhot lacked recognition as a painter. If submitted for exhibition, Sunset in Barfleur would have been far more at home in a Salon des Refusés (an exhibition for artists rejected by a jury) than in an official Salon, but it is doubtful that it could have made it into either.

The town of Barfleur is quite close to Gatteville and its lighthouse, and both are not very far from Valognes.

Félix Buhot
French, 1847-1898

Private Collection

This image is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. Other uses are not permitted.

Oil on paper mounted on board
4 3/4 x 6 1/8 inches