4. * Constantinos Volanakis (Greek, 1837-1907) La prise du matin signé en grec (en bas à gauche) huile sur panneau 21.5 x 45cm (8 7/16 x 17 11/16in). signed in Greek (lower left) oil on board Provenance Private collection, Athens. Bonhams London, The Greek Sale, 1 April 2003, lot 20. Acquired from the above sale and thence by descent to the present owner. Volanakis was one of the first artists who went against the powerful tradition of historicism promoting a fresh and innocent approach to nature. The 1869 International exhibition featuring works by French landscape painters of the Barbizon school, as well as seascape painters of the Hague school highlighted Volanakis' natural inclination and a common quest shared by many German artists. A profound love of the sea acquires a poetic quality in Volanakis' work. The small, unknown ports which lack human presence, the "dialogue" between the boats and the sea and the hues that transform everything, concern Volanakis more than the impressionistic dissolution of colour. The organized composition is lightened by the fine details of the boats, the man that is partly behind the sail and the interplay of the two red spots in the foreground. The artist takes pleasure in the variety of the tones of the sea and the rocks, formed by a source of light resting outside of the painting, and the way the illusion of distance prevents us from clearly discerning any other vessels. The calm, serene seas with the vast horizons, so treasured by the artist after his encounter with Flemish seascapes, are a truthful statement of his art.