© Courtauld Gallery
Seurat and the Sea
13 February 2026 — 17 May 2026
On NowSeurat spent five summers on the English Channel — in Honfleur, Port-en-Bessin and Gravelines — seeking, in his words, to "wash his eyes" of Paris. These 26 coastal works are a rare counterpoint to his better-known city scenes, and the first devoted exhibition in the UK in 30 years.
From Courtauld Gallery
The Courtauld presents the first ever exhibition dedicated to the seascapes of the French artist Georges Seurat (1859–1891). This major, focused display is the first devoted to Seurat in the UK in almost 30 years. It charts the evolution of his radical and distinctive style through the recurring motif of the sea. The Courtauld holds the largest collection of works by Seurat in the UK. The artist is best known as the creator of the Neo-Impressionist technique,...
Read more at Courtauld Gallery →Critic Reviews
TimeOut
Asiimov Baker
"Featuring works painted over five summers between 1885-90, the linear curation of the show tracks you through each stop Seurat made along the coast. As his style becomes more refined with each sojourn, dashes turn into dots, which condense tighter and closer, deepening the dreamy shading of these scenes. Period postcards displayed next to works like The Hospice and Lighthouse of Honfleur show the degree of accuracy with which he painted these locations."
Read full review →The Telegraph
Alastair Sooke
Seurat wasn’t just dotty, he was magnificently weird
"A first-of-its-kind Courtauld exhibition brings together the French artist’s haunting seaside paintings."
Read full review →The Guardian
Adrian Searle
The god of small things
"It is a quietly tremendous exhibition. Even if one takes on board the artist’s claims to science, objectivity and his adherence to theories about colour and perception which distance him from impressionism, Seurat’s paintings are peculiar and strange."
Read full review →About the Artist
Ernest Laurent, 1883 / Louvre, Paris
Georges Seurat
French · 1859–1891
Painting, Drawing & Works on Paper
Inventor of Pointillism, Seurat applied colour in systematic dots of pure pigment to create monumental compositions that fused scientific rigour with extraordinary stillness and formal authority.
Visit
The Strand, London·View on artmap
Sunday10am–6pm
Monday10am–6pm
Tuesday10am–6pm
Wednesday10am–6pm
Thursday10am–6pm
Friday10am–6pm
Saturday ·10am–6pm
© Courtauld Gallery
Seurat and the Sea
13 February 2026 — 17 May 2026
On NowSeurat spent five summers on the English Channel — in Honfleur, Port-en-Bessin and Gravelines — seeking, in his words, to "wash his eyes" of Paris. These 26 coastal works are a rare counterpoint to his better-known city scenes, and the first devoted exhibition in the UK in 30 years.
From Courtauld Gallery
The Courtauld presents the first ever exhibition dedicated to the seascapes of the French artist Georges Seurat (1859–1891). This major, focused display is the first devoted to Seurat in the UK in almost 30 years. It charts the evolution of his radical and distinctive style through the recurring motif of the sea. The Courtauld holds the largest collection of works by Seurat in the UK. The artist is best known as the creator of the Neo-Impressionist technique,...
Read more at Courtauld Gallery →Critic Reviews
TimeOut
Asiimov Baker
"Featuring works painted over five summers between 1885-90, the linear curation of the show tracks you through each stop Seurat made along the coast. As his style becomes more refined with each sojourn, dashes turn into dots, which condense tighter and closer, deepening the dreamy shading of these scenes. Period postcards displayed next to works like The Hospice and Lighthouse of Honfleur show the degree of accuracy with which he painted these locations."
Read full review →The Telegraph
Alastair Sooke
Seurat wasn’t just dotty, he was magnificently weird
"A first-of-its-kind Courtauld exhibition brings together the French artist’s haunting seaside paintings."
Read full review →The Guardian
Adrian Searle
The god of small things
"It is a quietly tremendous exhibition. Even if one takes on board the artist’s claims to science, objectivity and his adherence to theories about colour and perception which distance him from impressionism, Seurat’s paintings are peculiar and strange."
Read full review →About the Artist
Ernest Laurent, 1883 / Louvre, Paris
Georges Seurat
French · 1859–1891
Painting, Drawing & Works on Paper
Inventor of Pointillism, Seurat applied colour in systematic dots of pure pigment to create monumental compositions that fused scientific rigour with extraordinary stillness and formal authority.
Visit
The Strand, London·View on artmap
Sunday10am–6pm
Monday10am–6pm
Tuesday10am–6pm
Wednesday10am–6pm
Thursday10am–6pm
Friday10am–6pm
Saturday ·10am–6pm