ALFRED STEVENS (BELGIAN, 1823-1906)

Alfred Stevens, though Belgian, spent most of his adult life in France. Enraptured by both French landscape and French culture, his paintings ranged in subject matter from scenes of everyday life, to portraits of the French bourgeoisie.

However, in 1880, on the advice of his doctor, Stevens was advised to leave the city and visit the coast, where the sea air was thought to improve his health. This resulted in a secondment from his previous works, and a period of exploration into depicting the landscape of the northern coast of France and port towns such as Le Tréport.

In the present lot, Stevens uses a vibrant colour palette in the sea, which provides a sense of depth to the horizon line. This is contrasted by the flattening of the boats and the lighthouse, which are purposefully ‘naïve’ in style.

We are grateful to the Comité Alfred Stevens for confirming the authenticity of this work. The work is accompanied by a certificate from the Comité Alfred Stevens and will be included in their forthcoming Alfred Stevens catalogue raisonné, now in preparation.