Boats under Construction 1874

Editor: Here we have Berthe Morisot's "Boats under Construction" from 1874, painted with oil on canvas. It's quite a busy scene! All the timber and unfinished hulls give the impression of intense labor. What stands out to you the most in this piece? Curator: I’m drawn to the representation of the means of production itself. Look closely – Morisot isn't romanticizing leisure; instead, she is focusing on the raw, material aspects of shipbuilding. The emphasis on lumber and skeletal boat forms exposes the labor-intensive process often hidden from the finished product. Editor: So, you see it as a comment on work, rather than just a pretty landscape? Curator: Exactly! Consider the social context. 1874 was a time of significant industrial change. Morisot isn't simply painting boats; she's depicting a specific mode of production, the craft involved, the sheer human effort. Notice the textures she creates with visible brushstrokes - a celebration of the materiality of the paint mirroring the materiality of the shipyard. What do you think about the artist using painting en plein air in this context? Editor: That's fascinating. I hadn't considered the plein-air approach as connected to the labor involved. So, she’s bringing the studio outside, almost like the workers bring their labor outside? Curator: Precisely. This merging of artistic practice with a working environment blurs traditional boundaries. It's not high art versus low craft, but rather an integration of the two through the shared emphasis on material transformation. Editor: I see what you mean! Now, looking at it again, it's less about the beautiful boats and more about the process that brings them to life. The materiality and the act of creation are the subjects. Thank you for this explanation. Curator: Indeed. It shows us how closely Impressionism engaged with the rapidly changing industrial world through attention to not only color and light, but to work and material too.