The Shore at Duarnenez 1905

Maxime Maufra made this oil painting of The Shore at Duarnenez, with energetic brushstrokes that feel like they are capturing a fleeting moment. It’s like he’s saying, “Hey, look at this light, this wave, this tree, right now!” I find myself drawn to the way Maufra’s built up the surface with visible touches. You can almost feel the wind and the spray of the sea in those impasto strokes, can’t you? The texture becomes part of the story, it’s not just about representing the scene, it's about experiencing it. Look at the way he daubs the foliage with short, staccato marks, and then contrasts it with the longer, fluid strokes of the water. Maufra reminds me a little of Courbet, in the way he seems so committed to the materiality of paint itself. These are both painters who know that the gesture and the mark are just as important as the subject. For Maufra, as for many artists, painting is an ongoing experiment, a way of seeing, thinking, and feeling.