This beach was in the middle of changing forever, and Monet's own brush changes tell part of that story too.
What you're looking at
Monet painted this beach scene in 1867 at Sainte-Adresse, a coastal suburb of Le Havre in Normandy where he had grown up. On the sand, fishermen go about their real, working day, while up on the bluff above, a vacationer scans the sea through a telescope beside a woman in a scarlet ribbon hat, an early tourist enjoying the same view as the working fishing fleet below.
A working village becoming a resort
New rail lines had begun turning this quiet fishing village into a seaside resort for tourists right around the time Monet painted this scene, and the painting captures both worlds at once: real fishing boats still working the water, and new visitors arriving to admire the same coastline purely for pleasure. Monet began the painting outdoors but likely revised parts of it later in his studio.
Monet actually changed his mind about the boats himself. He first painted pale pleasure yachts into the water, then painted over them with the working fishing boats visible today, shifting the emphasis back toward the village's real economic life rather than its emerging tourist identity. He signed his name directly onto the painted sand. Monet stayed with family in Sainte-Adresse that summer while short on money and away from Paris. It's now held by the Art Institute of Chicago.
One detail to look for
Look at the boats out on the water. Underneath the fishing vessels visible today, Monet originally painted lighter, more decorative pleasure yachts before changing his mind and painting over them.
See it at its real size
Our canvas print is labeled against the true size of the original, 75.8 x 102.5 cm. Shop the canvas print.