From February 13 to May 17, 2026, the Courtauld Gallery will hold the exhibition “Seurat and the Sea”
Source: Courtauld Gallery. Image: Georges Seurat: Seascape at the Port of Besan, Normandy, 1888.
The Courtauld Museum is to host its first exhibition focusing on the seascapes of French artist Georges Seurat (1859-1891). This major exhibition, opening on 13 February 2026, will be the first dedicated exhibition to Seurat in the UK for almost 30 years. It will chart the evolution of his radical and unique style through recurring maritime themes.
The Griffin Catalyst Exhibition: Seurat and the Sea follows the Courtauld Gallery’s major Impressionist exhibitions, such as Cézanne’s The Card Players and Van Gogh. Self-Portrait and the recent critically acclaimed Griffin Catalyst exhibition: Monet and London. Thames View attracted a record 120,000 visitors, with the entire tour sold out, including extended opening hours to meet demand.
The Courtauld Museum has the largest collection of Seurat’s works in the UK. The artist is known as the creator of the Neo-Impressionist technique of juxtaposing small dots of solid color to render shape and light. Due to Seurat’s untimely death at the age of 31, the number of his works is very small, and exhibitions dedicated to him are rare.
The Griffin Catalyst exhibition: Seurat and the Sea will bring together some 23 paintings, drawings and sketches that Seurat produced during the five summers he spent on the coast of northern France between 1885 and 1890. Seurat worked in port towns along the English Channel, including Honfleur, Port-Besan and Gravelines, capturing their seascapes, regattas and port activities in his distinctive Neo-Impressionist style. technology. In his words, he sought to “wash away from the eyes the days spent in the studio (Paris) and translate in the most faithful way all the nuances of bright clarity”.
