Eugène Louis Boudin

Heffel Auction House Biography and Notes

When Eugène Boudin's father, a harbour pilot, retired from the sea to sell art supplies and picture frames in northern France, Boudin also abandoned his plans to become a captain and went to work with him. Through their shop he met Barbizon master Jean-François Millet, who saw his interest in art and encouraged him to pursue painting. Boudin followed Millet's advice and traveled to Paris, where he trained at the Louvre. As his skills developed, Boudin began to exhibit his work and to associate with other artists, meeting the Dutch painter Johan Jongkind who taught him the importance of painting out-of-doors. In 1857 Boudin met a young Claude Monet, and passed this habit on to him, becoming a singular influence in Monet's life. Boudin traveled extensively and when at home painted primarily in northern France, never losing interest in the sea - harbours and boats as subjects form a large part of his oeuvre. Due to his influence on Monet, Boudin is considered instrumental in the development of Impressionism. He participated in the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874, but also continued to show at the annual Paris salons. His masterpiece On the Beach, Sunset, from 1865 is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.