Art Collections Online
Storr Rock, Lady's Cove, le soir
SISLEY, Alfred (1839 - 1899)
Date: 1897
Media: oil on canvas
Size: 65.5 cm x 81.5 cm
Acquired: 2004; Purchase; with the assistance of Art Fund (Centenary Appeal)
Accession Number: NMW A 26362
Alfred Sisley was the only major Impressionist artist to work in Wales, spending July to September 1897 in Penarth, near Cardiff, and Langland Bay, on the Gower Peninsula. These paintings of south Wales, which explore the effects of light and weather, are his only seascapes, and recall Monet's views of the Breton Coast. Sisley had married his long-term partner Eugénie Lescouzec during his stay in Penarth, and the visit to Langland Bay was their honeymoon, though both were in declining health.
The Langland Bay pictures fall into two groups: firstly, views along the beach at Lady's Cove (now called Rotherslade Bay), overlooked by the Osborne Hotel, where he stayed; secondly, a number of paintings centred on Storr's Rock. He was fascinated by this enormous, isolated outcrop of rock close to the hotel and painted it at varying stages of the tide. This painting shows the north face of the rock at low tide on a sunny evening.
Comments - (5)
Dear Philip,
You're quite right; according to the exhibition catalogue Sisley in England and Wales (published in 2008) there are 20 known works produced by Sisley during his time in south Wales. We have one other depiction of the Welsh coast by him in our collection: The Cliff at Penarth, evening, low tide.
Best wishes,
Marc
Digital Team
Vivien Bosley, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
It was a delight to come across this Alfred Sisley painting of Storrs Rock, Langland Bay. It caught my eye and drew me in because of the light. The painter has cleverly used a person to show the scale of the rock. When I read about the painting I was thrilled to find that this was painted at Langland Bay. (A place very close to my heart. I have spent many hours there and continue to visit all through the year!) However, in all my memorable times there I never discovered Storrs Rock! Thanks to my visit to the national museum and discovery of Alfred Sisley I shall now see Storrs Rock and marvel at how and why I found it!
Belinda Docherty ( Neath, West Glamorgan)