Le bassin de Deauville 1877

Eugène Boudin created this oil on canvas painting, named "Le bassin de Deauville," capturing a port scene. Boudin lived and worked in France during a period of immense social and economic change. France in the 19th century witnessed a significant shift from an agrarian society to an industrialized nation, marked by urbanization and the rise of a bourgeoisie class with new money to spend on leisure. Deauville, depicted here, became one of the fashionable resorts catering to this class. Boudin's choice of subject matter, the activity of the harbor, speaks to the increasing importance of maritime trade and travel during this period. To truly understand Boudin’s artistic decisions, one could study the economic and travel history of the time. It is also vital to look at the archives of the French artistic institutions, to find records of Boudin's exhibition history. The history of art lies in the history of its time.