Departure of a Cargo Ship 1905

Here's this painting of a harbour bustling with ships, by Maxime Maufra. It’s a symphony of blues and grays, punctuated by the whites of sails and the dark hulls of ships. Imagine Maufra, standing on the dock, battling the elements. The wind is whipping, the light is shifting. Look at the way the paint is applied, thick and gestural, capturing the chop of the water, the smokestacks looming in the background like blurry exclamation marks. Each brushstroke feels like a response to the moment, a dance between observation and expression. I sympathize with Maufra, trying to pin down the atmosphere of a transient scene. It reminds me a bit of Turner, but with a French sensibility for color and light. You can feel the weather, the salt in the air, and the sense of movement. The brush is the ship; the artist is the harbour.