Konrad Mägi visited France twice, both times for several months, and we know that he painted there – and not just a little. However, this painting is almost the only one that has reached us today.

In early May of 1911, Mägi traveled with his good friend Ferdinand Kull to the coastal town of Dieppe in Normandy. Dieppe was by no means an unknown place in European painting: many landscape painters visited here in the 19th century. In the mid-century, Dieppe began to be developed as a seaside resort, and a direct line was built from Paris, attracting residents of the capital. Among others, several artists came here to paint, such as Paul Gauguin, Camille Pissarro, Claude Monet, and others. According to Ferdinand Kull’s memories, all this did not play a role in choosing their destination – Dieppe was simply the closest seaside town to Paris.

The tourist season had not yet begun, and Mägi managed to rent a large, white room. Since the summer of 1911 was exceptionally hot, the city was flooded with vacationers in the following months. Mägi first started working near the medieval cathedral of Dieppe and the local casino, but later he took walks around the city every day and painted. This painting reveals a view of the beach of Dieppe and the chalk cliffs behind it. It is a part of more than 120 kilometers long rocky coastline, which has been painted by several artists. We perceive space and abundance of light; the painting is not densely packed with details, the brushstrokes are flowing, and the forms are somewhat abstract here and there – Konrad Mägi’s new creative period differed from the previous and the following, even if this period consisted of only one painting.

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