Coast at Santa Cristina

Joaquin Sorolla produced this painting in 1914 and it features a landscape and seascape in combination. We find a relatively simple scene in the foreground, with a bright blue sea showing from behind.

We find a number of trees without much vegetation standing precariously on the edge of this hill. The ground beneath them is brown or orange in tone and suggests years of sun has eroded most of the plants that might have grown there. The lack of protection from the trees has left this walkway vulnerable to the elements, particularly in the warmer parts of the year. Between the hill on which we sit and the blue sea in the far distance is a spread of cliffs which bring light colour into that part of the composition. Sorolla adored the landscape in which he lived and would regularly travel around the country in order to discover new gems which could inspire new paintings.

Sorolla was known for implementing a huge number of tones within his paintings, though most be subtle alterations of just a few colours. This enabled him to create lifelike creations where one could immediately feel as if they were in the painting themselves. His work on Valencia beaches was particularly memorable and it was here that his control of light and colour could be displayed at its most impressive. He would capture light reflecting from the surface of the water and then spread reflecting tones elsewhere in the painting.

The artist would capture many stunning locations across Spain and would turn his attention to each and every province of the country at one point or another. He also worked on a number of series that would bring together the country across a number of related artworks that would also follow similar themes. Sorolla also focused on the lives of ordinary folk and was interested in their daily routines, which for some involved some considerable hard work. Today we can see this as historical in content and learn about the lives of Spaniards from the past. Today we can confidently place this artist amongst the highest echelons of Spanish art history, where he can genuinely sit in the company of other masters such as Goya, Velazquez plus others from the 20th century.